SENATOR Christopher “Bong” Go expressed a sense of sadness at this year’s Kadayawan Festival, stating that the celebration felt incomplete without the presence of former President Rodrigo Duterte.
In a message delivered at the festival on Sunday, Go, a long-time aide and ally of the former president, shared his well-wishes for the attendees and tourists.
“Happy Sunday, my favorite day, and Happy Kadayawan Festival to all of us. Long live the Dabawenyos, and please take care. To all the tourists, enjoy; it is very beautiful.”
However, he added that the day was “sad because Tatay Digong is not here.” He then urged the public to “continue to pray for his health and safety.”
Go was joined at the festival by Congressman Omar Duterte and Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa.
He thanked the Duterte family for their presence and praised the organizers and participants of the Indak-Indak sa Kadayawan competition.
The Marcos administration surrendered the former president to the International Criminal Court tribunal in March this year after arresting him when he landed from his flight in Hong Kong to meet with the overseas Filipino workers there.
The ICC’s Office of the Prosecutor had applied for an arrest warrant against the Davao City mayor-elect on Feb. 10, 2025, for crimes against humanity of murder, torture, and rape. The Pre-Trial Chamber I reportedly found reasonable grounds to hold Duterte to be an “indirect co-perpetrator” for atrocities committed during his war on drugs from 2011 to 2019.
In a related event, Senator Dela Rosa also participated in the second Kadayawan Shootfest on Saturday, an activity promoting the responsible use of firearms as a sport.
The event, held in partnership with Dr. Gadget Shooting Dynamics Gun Club, ran from Aug. 16 to 17.
