The Nueva Vizcaya Provincial Council for Culture and the Arts convened in the Paniqui Function Room of the Patricio Dumlao Sr. Executive Building for their 2nd Quarter Meeting on May 6, 2025. The agenda included updates on the People’s Museum and Library Project Phase II and the proposal of Phase III, the Local Cultural Inventory targets of Nueva Vizcaya for 2025, and the upcoming Grand Ammungan Festival.
Though still currently a work in progress, the People’s Museum and Library was inaugurated and opened to the public on May 5, 2025. As far as Phase II goes, the People’s Museum and Library Project is considered 98.12% accomplished, with such problems as pest infestation rectified and significant masonry work completed, while electricity and security systems installations are still ongoing. The Phase III proposal is still subject to further discussion, though it includes exterior and interior concerns such as the installation of signage on the building façade and detail work on the railings. The proposal also includes the recreation of a PWD-compliant ramp for the entrance, with the current being deemed inadequate, and the installation of a PWD lift for the interior that would not interfere with the existing architecture. These inclusions were on the insistence of Governor Atty. Jose V. Gambito, who had remarked in an earlier meeting that PWDs should be able to get around the museum.
The Local Cultural Inventory is a catalogue of cultural properties from the entire province. Through consistent submission by the Provincial Tourism and Culture Office (PTCO) to the National Center for Culture and Arts (NCCA), the provincial government continues to preserve Nueva Vizcaya’s cultural heritage. The PTCO proposed three submissions to this year’s LCI: the Capisaan Cave system in Kasibu, the Tagem dance of the Bugkalot IP (Indigenous People), and the Halvit/smithing craft of the Kalanguya IP. The discussions included clerical corrections to the entries, permissive appropriation on the part of non-IPs toward IPs, and the proposal of other cultural property to be submitted to the LCI, such as other historically significant schools within the province.
For the final part of the agenda, Acting PTCO Chief Marichelle O. Costales, representing Governor Atty. Jose V. Gambito as chairperson, presented the calendar of activities for the Grand Ammungan Festival 2025, reiterating the earlier words of Gov. Gambito who had said that, ‘Election year is no reason not to celebrate Ammungan’. The GAF 2025 will emphasize food tourism this time around with such events as the Travel and Tourism Expo and Coffee Festival, though other aspects of the rich cultures of Nueva Vizcaya will be on display during the Trade Fair and IP Day.
The NVPCCA continues to be committed to its goals as stewards of the province’s cultural heritage. This commitment continues to show through regularity and careful consideration of all subjects within its purview. As both the Election and the Grand Ammungan Festival draw nearer, the NVCPPA continues to act on behalf and in the best interest of the province of Nueva Vizcaya. /igmb
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