DepEd gives host Dagupan thumbs up
THE Department of Education (DepEd) gave Dagupan City a rousing “thank you” for the successful staging of this year’s edition of the Ilocos Region Athletic Association meet (IRAA) held in the city on February 22-27.
Speaking before local officials, regional education executives, division superintendents and sporting officials during the welcome fellowship night last Wednesday, Education Secretary Jesli Lapus lavishly praised host Mayor Alipio Fernandez Jr. and the people of Dagupan City for organizing “the best IRAA meet worth remembering in the coming years.”
Dr. Ligaya Soledad Miguel, DepEd regional director, and 13 division superintendents likewise rated Dagupan’s over-all preparation as “superb”.
“This monumental feat is a spectacular display of teamwork from the cross section of Dagupan’s government, business, education, hospitals, barangays, transport and the volunteer sectors. We couldn’t have done this without them,” said City Manager Alvin Fernandez, chairman of the IRAA Meet steering committee.
Dagupan bid adieu to more than 6,000 young athletes, coaches and other sports officials on Friday as the seven-day odyssey for the region’s sporting gold in 18 sports competitions formally ended in an emotional awarding and closing ceremonies.
Ilocos Norte nailed more than a decade-long record in history for dominating the Meet as over-all champion, followed by Pangasinan II and Pangasinan in the second and third spots, respectively.
Dagupan, notching 150 points, landed 7th among 14 divisions, mainly driven by the gold haul ushered in the secondary division events for basketball and taekwando with teams comprised of female athletes.
Mayor Fernandez, for his part, expressed his gratitude to the DepEd for the trust accorded the city to host the event.
“After 11 years, we brought IRAA back to Dagupan. This is our continuing recognition of the role being played by young people as our active partners in the development process and community development,” he said.
Ilocos Norte formally accepted the hosting of the next IRAA meet in February 2010.—CIO
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