27/08/2026
๐ฃ๐ฅ๐๐ฉ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐ฆ๐ฃ๐๐๐๐ ๐ด/๐ฎ๐ฑ/๐ฎ๐ฒ
๐๐ผ๐ป. ๐๐๐๐. ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐๐ฑ๐ฎ๐ฑ๐ผ ๐ ๐ฎ๐ต๐ถ๐ฝ๐๐ ๐๐ฟ.
(๐ผ๐ป ๐ถ๐ป๐ฐ๐น๐๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐ผ๐ณ ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ด๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐ฎ๐น ๐๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฏ๐ฒ๐ ๐ถ๐ป Davao ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐๐ฎ๐ฑ๐ฎ๐๐ฎ๐๐ฎ๐ป ๐๐ฒ๐๐๐ถ๐๐ฎ๐น)
Do you know that among us, here in Davao City, aside from the 11 recognized ethnolinguistic tribes are many members of the Mandaya, Tagakaolo and other indigenous people?
The Mandaya, for instance, are predominantly associated with Davao Oriental and their ancestral communities there. But generations of Mandaya have also come to Davao Cityโto study, to work, to raise families, to build livelihoods, and eventually, to call this city their home.
And their presence here should not be viewed merely as a recent movement of people.
Long before the political boundaries that we recognize todayโbefore the division of the old Province of Davao, before the creation and expansion of Davao City, and before communities were separated by the lines we now draw on mapsโthe peoples of this part of Mindanao interacted with one another.
They traded. They traveled. They formed communities. At times, perhaps, they fought. But they also helped one another, intermarried, exchanged traditions, and lived alongside one another.
Our histories did not develop in isolation. And regardless of tribe, we are ultimately one people. I believe that much of the same blood, history, struggle, and hope runs through our veins.
Every year, we celebrate Kadayawan.
Kadayawan has evolved from a celebration of thanksgiving and abundance into something even greaterโa celebration of our identity, our diversity, and our unity as Dabawenyos.
For many years, we have given special recognition to the five Indigenous Peoples groups and six Moro groups represented in Kadayawan: the Ata, Bagobo Klata, Matigsalug, Obu Manuvu, Bagobo Tagabawa, Kagan, Iranun, Maguindanaon, Maranao, Sama, and Tausug.
And let me be very clear: nothing that I say today seeks to diminish their recognition.
Their place in Kadayawan is established. Their histories and contributions to Davao deserve to be celebrated and protected.
Indeed, one reason Kadayawan has become such a successful festival is that it does more than entertain.
It tells a story.
It reminds us that these lands had thriving communities long before waves of migrants arrived from other parts of the Philippines.
There were already leaders here. There were warriors whose names became legends. There were systems of governance, customs, languages, music, art and traditions.
Culture was already flourishing here.
Kadayawan gives those cultures a stage.
And in doing so, it tells every Dabawenyo something important:
Our differences do not divide Davao. They make Davao what it is.
But, Your Honor, Davao City today is not home to only eleven ethnolinguistic communities.
Davao has become a true melting pot.
The 2024 Census places our population at 1,848,947 people. We are a city composed of people who came from different provinces, different islands, different religions, different languages, and different cultural traditions.
And that reality invites us to ask:
How much more inclusive can Kadayawan become?
How can we provide more opportunities for Indigenous Peoples to preserve and showcase their cultures?
And how can Kadayawan continue to strengthen the idea that despite our different identities, we are one Davao?
These questions became particularly relevant in the discussions that followed this yearโs Kadayawan.
There have been conversations regarding the criteria for recognizing and representing ethnolinguistic groups in the festival.
And among the groups mentioned is the Mandaya.
It may be argued that the principal ancestral domains and traditional settlements of the Mandaya are found in what is now Davao Oriental.
That historical reality should be respected.
But there is another reality that we should also recognize:
Mandaya and other tribes from the Davao Region live among us.
They study here.
They work here.
They raise their children here.
They participate in our economy.
They contribute to our communities.
And many have called Davao City home for generations.
And so I submit that recognition need not be a zero-sum proposition.
Recognizing another culture does not diminish the cultures already recognized.
Giving another Indigenous community an opportunity to participate does not take history away from the eleven ethnolinguistic groups of Kadayawan.
Instead, it can enlarge the very principle that Kadayawan represents:
Unity in diversity.
Therefore, if the Mandaya community and the other indigenous cultural communities of Davao Region who has now established Davao City as a place for their children as well, desires to participate and showcase their identity, traditions, music, dances, craftsmanship and culture during Kadayawan, I believe the City should seriously consider creating an avenue for that participation.
This does not necessarily mean redefining overnight the historical recognition accorded to the eleven ethnolinguistic groups.
There can be other mechanisms.
There can be an expanded Indigenous Peoples cultural showcase.
There can be guest ethnolinguistic communities.
There can be designated cultural exhibitions and performances.
There can be spaces where other Indigenous Peoples who have become part of modern Davao can tell their stories.
The details can be studied.
But the principle should be simple:
In Davao, everybody is recognized. Nobody is left out.
Because ultimately, whether Mandaya, Ata, Klata, Matigsalug, Obu Manuvu, Tagabawa, Kagan, Iranun, Maguindanaon, Maranao, Sama, Tausugโor any of the many peoples who now call this city homeโ
we are Filipinos.
We are Dabawenyos.
We share one city.
We share one future.
And if Kadayawan is truly a celebration of thanksgiving, culture, unity and identity, then perhaps its continuing evolution should reflect the continuing evolution of Davao itself.
A city that remembers where it came from.
A city that honors those who came before us.
But also a city confident enough to open its arms to everyone who has become part of its story.
"No tribe diminished. No culture forgotten. No Dabawenyo left out."
Madayaw! Salamatay!
