Tugbongan, Cabangahan contingents win Sarokfest

Tugbongan Elementary School and Cabangahan National High School yesterday grabbed top prizes in Consolacion town's Sarok Festival Grand Mardi Gras in the elementary and high school categories, respectively, and romped away with P50,000 each.

Consolacion Central School and Pulpugan National High School settled for second place with P30,000 each; while Tayud Elementary School and Tugbongan National High landed at third spot with P20,000 each.

Cabangahan was also adjudged Best in Sarok, while Tayud was declared Best in Street Dancing with cash prizes worth P2,000 each.

Though it was observed that nobody was selling nor wearing the native hat "sarok", except the dancers during the Sarok Festival, the Grand Mardi Gras that capped the weeklong celebration of Consolacion town's 86th founding anniversary was able to highlight a traditional means of livelihood of the municipality.

Hundreds of residents in Consolacion town yesterday flocked at the Sta. Lucia Realty for the annual Sarok Festival Mardi Gras and watched a total of 12 contingents in the street dancing activity.

Pupils and students from the town's elementary and national high schools donned costumes of splashing colors to match the native hat "sarok" and displayed their dancing prowess.

Prior to the Mardi Gras showdown, the contingents danced on the town's major thoroughfares.

The Sarok Festival is celebrated annually for the past ten years already. Consolacion has been known for making native hats that are locally called "sarok", one of the livelihood products of the town since 1920.

Sarok Festival was accredited by the Department of Tourism as a legitimate annual festival similar to the Sinulog, which is celebrated in Cebu City on the third Sunday of January.

The festivity is a tribute to the "sarok" being used by farmers and fishermen in protecting themselves from the heat and rain in pursuit of their daily tasks. - Mitchelle P. Calipayan