All roads lead to La Union for Sillag Festival

PORO POINT FREEPORT ZONE – All roads lead to this Freeport in the City of San Fernando, La Union, as the two-day Sillag–the Poro Point Festival of Lights gets underway starting  Today March 7 to 8, 2014 with some 20,000 to 25,000 people expected to attend the various activities lined-up during the two-day festival.
 
Sillag Festival will be held at the Thunderbird Resorts, Poro Point Lighthouse and at the Sillag Village located at the Industrial area of the Poro Point Freeport Zone (PPFZ). It is La Union’s counterpart to Baguio City’s Panagbenga and Clark’s  International Hot Air Balloon Fiesta.  
 
The festival will officially kick-off on March 7, 2014 at 6 a.m. with the Sillag Golf Cup and opening of the Sillag Delights—a trade and food fair showcasing La Union products and cuisine.  Poro Point Management Corporation (PPMC), the festival organizer, integrated in the various events and physical decorations the use of local products such as bamboo to promote the local community’s sense of pride.
 
The Sillag Festival is rich in symbolisms for its major events – the lighting of the Sillag Village, Lantern Fluvial Parade, Hope Lanterns, Sunset Run, and Street Dancing with light adornments.

The Sillag Village shows the people’s sense of community. The Lantern Fluvial Parade or parade of illuminated and decorated boats from various participating agencies/companies represents boats coming back safely to shore guided by the light emitted by the lighthouse. Hope lanterns symbolize the people’s collective hope for the socio-economic development of the region as well as the participants’ individual hopes for a better tomorrow. The Sunset Run gives the anticipation that as the day ends, a bright new day beckons. The light adornment of street dancers depict that each person can be a source of light to his fellow human beings.

Poro Point Management Corporation (PPMC) Chairman Ives Nisce said that as part of the festival, the PPMC together with the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) and the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) will inaugurate the P79-M three road projects inside the Freeport.
 
“These roads will definitely help boost tourism and business in Poro Point Freeport Zone and serve as a catalyst in generating business in the region,” Nisce said.
 
He added that the new Master Development Plan of the PPFZ will be launched during day 2 of the Sillag.  “The Master Development Plan will serve as our blueprint in the development and marketing of the entire Freeport zone,” he said.
 
The festival is inspired by the Poro Point Lighthouse which best symbolizes the role of the Poro Point Freeport Zone as a beacon of development in Northern Luzon. Sillag comes from the Ilocano word “sellag” which means moonbeam or illumination from the moon.


Press release from Bases Conversion and Development Authority