BONTOC, Mountain Province – The month-long celebration of the 27th Indigenous Peoples’ Rights Act (IPRA) Month in Mountain Province (MP) culminated at the Governor Leonard G. Mayaen Sports Complex on October 21, 2024.
The culminating event was led by the National Commission on Indigenous People (NCIP) MP headed by its Provincial Director Michael Umaming.
The theme for the celebration was “Mga Katutubo at Katutubong Dunong: Pahalagahan, Pangalagaan at Parangalan” (Valuing, Nurturing, and Honoring Indigenous Peoples and Indigenous Knowledge).
Different indigenous people mandatory representatives (IPMRs) from the different municipalities led by Provincial IPMR Tomas B. Tawagen, together with the provincial officials led by Congress representative Maximo Y. Dalog, Jr., Governor Bonifacio C. Lacwasan, Jr. and Vice Governor Francis O. Tauli; and the heads and other personnel from the provincial government and various national line agencies altogether joined in in the celebration.
Moreover, NCIP-CAR Regional Director Roland P. Calde graced the celebration with a message, emphasizing the importance of indigenous knowledge, systems and practices (IKSP) to development. According to Calde, the progress and development that the people of Mountain Province are enjoying is the result of their rich cultural customs, which they inherited from their ancestors.
“Nu anya ti kasasa-ad tayo tatta ket isu ti produkto ti kuna tayo nga nagmamayat nga kaugalian ken sur-suru nga inted ti pangina-en, ti pangama-en, ken iti nagapuwan tayo. Isu ti kuna tayo nga IKSP nga isu ti nang mold nu anya tayo tatta,” he said. By Hail, MP
