Dubbed as the country’s most colorful festival, the annual Masskara Festival in Bacolod City, Negros Occidental is a month-long celebration that aims to spread joy and delight to locals as well as tourists who flock to the City of Smiles to witness the numerous events and take part in the merrymaking.
The festival highlights are held every fourth Sunday of October. To celebrate, people wear smiling-faced masks, colorful costumes and bold and unique statement accessories as they parade in the streets of Bacolod.
According to PLDT Community Relations Head Katherine P. Diaz De Rivera, “the Masskara Festival serves as a platform for world-class talent – a colorful celebration of culture and pride. The energy of the street dancers, despite the heat of the sun, was astounding. It was a delight to have seen through their truly inviting smiling masks, their true energy, passion and dedication to showcase their talents.”
“You don’t only feel the warm vibe through their performances but also through the local community that radiated with warm smiles of welcome when we conducted a hygiene promotion and feeding program in partnership with the Red Cross,” Diaz De Rivera added.
Giving back
Celebrating the Masskara Festival, PLDT organized a community outreach program in Barangay 7, Bacolod City with the support and assistance of the PLDT Negros employee-volunteers headed by PLDT Negros Consumer Experience Zone Head Rene Santillan.
In partnership with the Philippine Red Cross (PRC) Negros Occidental Bacolod chapter, PLDT also held a lecture on hygiene promotion, distributing hygiene kits in PLDT pouches made by the women sewmates from Bicol. The kit included a towel, toothpaste, toothbrush, and soap.
The Company, moreover, conducted a feeding program where they served hot meals, cooked using the PRC Iloilo mobile kitchen, and apples to 300 children in the area. PLDT partnered with the PRC in Iloilo to transport the mobile kitchen to Bacolod, the Company being one of the major donors.
Through the years, PLDT has strengthened its partnership with the PRC, having regularly partnered with the organization for the bloodletting program in Bacolod.
Adding color
PLDT Home Fibr added color to the Masskara Festival, bringing the ultimate festival experience in the City of Smiles by welcoming locals and tourists alike at the exclusive Home Fibr lounge with unli free WiFi and unli free entertainment. Festivalgoers also brought out their inner creativity by designing their own Masskara festival masks and joining a fun digital coloring app.
PLDT Home Fibr also offered an exclusive Fibr Masskara Sale to its Home Fibr subscribers who were able to save as much as P3,600 with waived activation and installation fees. These were made available in over seven booth blitzes across Bacolod City.
