Although the Araw ng Dabaw is not as spectacular as the Kadayawan Festival (touted to be the festivals of all festivals in Mindanao), it has its own charm to attract both foreign and local tourists.
People came in full force to witness the Parada Dabawenyo as the city celebrated its 74th year this week. Good weather prevailed and the parade that was too long (as all the government offices were represented) snaked its way through the city streets.
Also joining the parade were national government offices and agencies. For instance, the regional office of the Department of Tourism, headed by Art Boncato, joined in the celebration wearing sunny yellow shirts - as if proclaiming that summer is just around the corner.
The military, firemen, motorcycle riders, cowboys, and beauties (Mutya ng Dabaw and her entourage and the candidates of the Miss Earth Philippines Davao Region) graced the affair. The Muslim organizations and tribal groups likewise joined in the parade. There was also the drum and bugle corps which provided the color and sound to the celebration.
Davao has become the symbol of Mindanao. It is similar to what Manila is to Luzon and Cebu is to Visayas. Davao is three times that of the entire Metro Manila and approximately 7.8 times the size of Cebu. Davao occupies more than 2,400 square kilometers of land area.
"Over the last two decades, we have seen tremendous progress in infrastructure and linkages, trade and communications, and human resource development," said Mayor Sara Zimmerman Duterte-Carpio. "We continue to attract not only investors but people who have seen paradise in Davao."
Inday Sara, as her constituents called her, is the first elected lady mayor of Davao. She's only 32 years, a lawyer, and the daughter of former mayor Rodrigo Duterte (who is now the city's vice-mayor). Unlike her father, she trimmed the expenses by financing only the first three days of the celebration; the rest of the activities for the week were shouldered by the private sector.
"This year, in recognition of the invaluable contributions of our local industries in driving the engine of growth in our city, as a testament to our strong public-private partnership, we have given our private sector a more active role in this year's celebration of the Araw ng Dabaw," Duterte said.
With only a budget of P3.9 million, the city government hosted three major activities: the Datu Bago Awards (March 14), Mutya ng Dabaw beauty contest (March 15) and Parada Dabawenyo (March 16).
This year's Datu Bago awardees were cited "for having served as models of excellence and inspiration to the Dabawenyos and demonstrated exemplary competence and dedication to help achieve the city's development." They are Antonio B. Arellano, Bishop Fernando Capalla, Carmelina Vosotros-Francia, Mario Leofer Madrazo Lim, Rogelio Lomada Lizada (posthumous), and Guillermo Jr. Pilpil Torres. Inday Sara herself bestowed the award to the winners during a ceremony held at the Royal Mandaya Hotel.
On March 15, the busy streets of Rizal and San Pedro and some portions of Claveria were closed as high school students and elementary pupils participated in the Sayawan sa D'an (local term for street dancing).
"This is a competition of reinterpreted cheer and dance merriment that offers praise and gives approval to the Dabawenyo spirit of oneness and esteem as a people," explains councilor Al Ryan Alejandre. Ten contingents, mostly coming from schools in Davao City, participated in the contest.
Dabawenyos also flocked to the former Almendras Gym to witness the finals of the Mutya ng Dabaw. Irene Benn Bascuna emerged as the winner. The four other finalists were Glenn Camille Villanueva, Imari Haifa Mama, Carmen Smith, and Reemae Mozar.
Local historians claim that the name Davao was derived from the ancient Bagobo word daba-daba, which means "fire." On the other hand, the Tagabua tribe called the river bisecting the region Daba and the Guiangan tribe tagged it Davoh - thus the name Davao.
Davao was founded by a Spanish expedition led by Jose Oyanguren in 1848. He named the village Nueva Vergara after his hometown in Spain. In 1937, Davao became a chartered city when President Manuel L. Quezon of the Philippine Commonwealth signed into law a bill sponsored by then Davao Assemblyman Romualdo Quimpo.
Davao is known for its three icons: durian, waling-waling, and Philippine eagle.
The city is very accessible. It has regular air, sea, and land linkages to major points in the country. Davao City International Airport serves several flights everyday for passengers coming from and going to Manila (about one hour and 35 minutes away).
