The Basket Capital of Bohol celebrates its 150th founding anniversary on Tuesday with a packed program of thanksgiving rites, cultural presentations, civic recognition, and street festivities capping off with the signature Piskaya Festival.
The town of Antequera, formally established on March 17, 1876, by Spanish Governor General Joaquin Bengoechia — who named it after his hometown in Spain — marks the sesquicentennial with one of the most elaborate founding anniversary programs in the municipality’s history.
The day opens with a thanksgiving mass, followed by a floral offering at the town’s public market.
A formal program follows, led off by Vice Mayor Cecilia Solomon’s address and a dance presentation by the Department of Education.
Sangguniang Bayan Secretary Russel Eustaquio Villas Jr. then takes the stage for a retelling of the town’s 150-year history — a narrative stretching from its Spanish colonial founding to its present identity as a hub of woven basket craft.
Mayor Jose Pahang follows with his State of the Municipality Address, the centerpiece speech of the celebration and an occasion expected to survey the town’s achievements and lay out its direction heading into the next chapter of its history.
Dignitaries lined up to deliver messages include Bohol Gov. Aris Aumentado, Vice Gov. Nicanor Besas, First District Rep. John Geesnell “Baba” Yap II, and First District board members — a turnout reflecting the political significance of a 150th milestone in a province that takes its heritage towns seriously.
The program also sets aside time to honor the municipality’s own: past mayors who shaped Antequera through the decades, recent board examination passers, and sports achievers from the community.
Council member Lanibel Labado delivers the closing remarks.
The afternoon shifts to the streets, with a parade, street dancing, and a festival ritual showdown among competing groups, the day culminating with the announcement of winners.
All of it unfolds under the banner of the Piskaya Festival, Antequera’s homegrown cultural celebration whose name is rooted in the Bisaya word for abundance or plenty — a fitting emblem for a town whose identity has long been bound to the richness of its craft traditions and natural resources.
Antequera is widely recognized as a premier producer of woven bamboo and rattan baskets, a cottage industry that has sustained its economy and defined its character for generations.
The sesquicentennial comes as Bohol continues to rebuild its tourism momentum, with heritage towns like Antequera drawing growing interest from visitors drawn to the island’s cultural and natural attractions.