Metro Manila, Philippines – Mayor Guia Gomez announced that there will be no classes in San Juan City on June 25, 2018, Monday.
The suspension of classes will cover all public schools only, from elementary to senior High School. Gomez saidy the class suspension is a form of consideration towards the hardwork shown by students and teachers as participants in the Wattah Wattah Festival activities on Sunday, June 24.
The Wattah Wattah Festival or Basaan Festival is in celebration of the feast of St. John the Baptist, patron saint of the city and of many other communities throughout the Philippines. It is held annually every 24th of June.
Wattah Wattah Festival is a commemoration of the birth of Saint John (San Juan) The Baptist, who cleansed and prepared the people for the coming of Jesus Christ by baptizing them with water, thus part of the celebration is the traditional dousing of water (thus, the festival is also called Basaan) to passersby or unsuspecting commuters and visitors, supposedly to remind them of their baptism. Children and young adults also engage in “water wars” using water pistols. Residents also flock to the streets in San Juan City to enjoy a water shower being doused by roaming fire trucks.
Aside from the traditional “basaan” activities, other events are also lined up for the festival, including a grand parade of colors, the yearly inter-barangay street dancing competition, St. John the Baptist procession, and a street party at night.
Meanwhile, some local government units in Albay and select schools also announced class suspensions on Monday in anticipation of the planned transport strike or tigil pasada by transport groups to protest against government’s jeepney modernization and phaseout.
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