SANTA ANA, Cagayan (PIA) - - The rapid urbanization of this town never stopped kids, youth and kids-at-heart from experiencing and loving every minute of playing traditional games.

This after the Cagayan Economic Zone Authority (CEZA) recently spearheaded once again the 'Palaro ng Bayan' in line with the celebration of the town's 7th Viray Festival.

After two years of non-show due to COVID-19 pandemic, the local government unit of Santa Ana took pride to banner its annual Viray Festival, a thanksgiving event for the townsfolk’s bountiful sea harvest. It is named after the viray, an indigenous wooden banca used by the town’s early settlers to transport goods.

Ma. Jesusa Zingapan, chief tourism officer of CEZA, said that the conduct of traditional games was timely and relevant to advocate to the generation of today the beauty and joy of playing those games inherited from our forefathers which according to her is slowly dying due to the presence of social media at present.

She said the participants enjoyed playing bunong-braso (arm wrestle), blowing of flour, catching the egg, tug of war, sack race, kadang-kadang, basagan ng banga (breaking the pot), obstacle race, palo-sebo (climbing the greasy bamboo pole), and other Filipino traditional games.

Earlier, National Nutrition Council (NNC) Program Coordinator Maria Gisela Lonzaga lauded the initiative of the CEZA when it initially launched Palaro ng Bayan in 2019 and hopes that it should be sustained to reduce screen time especially schoolchildren.

Lonzaga added that physical activity such as playing of traditional games reduces risk of becoming overweight and obese and reduces risk of developing heart disease and diabetes. (MDCT/PIA Cagayan)