IRIGA City -- This year’s “Tinagba Festival” is seen to post P70 million in revenue for the city government, bettering the P60 million last year’s week-long festivities attended by nearly half a million foreign and local tourists.

At a conference last Thursday, Iriga Mayor Madelaine Alfelor Gazmen said that with the inclusion of the Davis Cup in the festivities on Feb. 10, 11, and 12, the projected revenue of P70 million is realizable as tourist arrivals are expected to increase by 35 percent from last year’s 15 percent.

The projected increases in tourist arrivals and revenue for the city government and the business sector can also be attributed to the inclusion of “Gayon Bicol 2012,” a competition of the 11 best Bicol festivals chosen by the Department of Tourism (DOT).

Earlier, Malacañang declared Feb. 11 as a non-working holiday in the city to give Irigueños a chance to participate in the local tradition of thanksgiving, which coincides with the feast day of the Lady of Lourdes.

Proclamation No. 319 was signed by Executive Secretary Paquito N. Ochoa Jr. for the Tinagba Festival celebration.

The mayor recalled that the local harvest festival which started in 1978 slowly earned the DOT recognition as among the major festivals in Bicol.

Recently, the “Tinagba Festival” was cited by the DOT as “the best tourism event in the Philippines” under the Arts and Culture category of Philippine festivals”.

This year, the city government won the right for hosting “Gayon Bicol” with a joint sponsorship by the DOT regional office. It spent P1.5 million for the preparations of the festival, promotions and prizes worth P500,000 for the winning performers.

Iriga City, a 60-percent agricultural community and a 4th class city, has become a tourist destination during Gazmen’s term.

The mayor said she also expects some 150 US-based Irigueños to attend the festival.

Also last Thursday, the city government, together with representatives from the “Agencia Espanol de Cooperacion Internacional para el Desarolo” of Spain, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), and the DILG Academy inaugurated the P3.75-million “Bagsakan Center” and cold storage facility for farmers produce.