Lamitan celebrates 43rd Lami-Lamihan Festival

LAMITAN CITY, Basilan (MindaNews / 26 June 2026) – Thousands of residents on Thursday turned up for the grand commemorative program of Lami-Lamihan Festival in Barangay Malinis that featured a grand parade, dances, and float competition.

One of the floats featured during the parade on Thursday, 25 June 2026. Photo courtesy of PIA Basilan

For this year the Local government organized over 60 activities, many of which celebrated the rich cultural heritage of the Yakan people.

The colorful floats highlighted local delicacies, products such as the traditional Yakan Tennun cloth, city landmarks, and cultural performances depicting Yakan heritage.

Addressing the crowd, Mayor Roderick Furigay described the festival as a celebration of Lamitan’s identity, diversity, and shared aspirations.

“Just like our traditional Yakan Tennun, where different threads are carefully woven into one beautiful masterpiece, our strength as a city comes from our diversity. We may come from different backgrounds, but we are woven together by our love for Lamitan and our vision for a better future,” Furigay said.

Security around the venue was tight but unobtrusive.

“Security is a whole-of-nation effort. It is the duty of every Lamiteño. Every act of discipline brings us closer to a safer and more progressive Lamitan,” Brig. Gen. Frederick Sales, 1101st Infantry Brigade Commander who was the guest of honor, said.

Jeannie Flores, an employee of a microfinance company, noticed a larger turnout this year compared to the previous years.

Although only on its 43rd year, the fanfare traces its roots to 1886, when Pedro Javier Cuevas, better known as Datu Kalun, brought together 25 communities in a gathering called Paglami-lamihan, a merrymaking as thanksgiving celebration for an abundant harvest.

The celebration evolved into an annual cultural festival of the Yakans.

In 1983, then Mayor Wilfredo Furigay, a grandson of Datu Kalun, revived the celebration, which has since become the Lami-Lamihan Festival.

Datu Kalun’s tomb and statue stand in Barangay Malinis, serving as enduring symbols of the city’s history and cultural heritage. (Queenie Casimiro/MindaNews)