ILIGAN CITY – About 50,000 devotees of Saint Michael the Archangel, patron saint of this city, attended a procession following the “Pagpakanaug” rite where his statue was brought down from its pedestal at the cathedral here on Wednesday, September 20.
SAINT Michael the Archangel devotees attend a procession in Iligan City on September 20. (Bonita L. Ermac)
Mayor Frederick Siao here expressed elation over the turnout.
“This has always been our tradition since way back, that I can no longer remember how it started. This is a source of pride for Iliganons, to give respect to our patron: Senor San Miguel,” said Siao.
“I should always say that Senor San Miguel the Archangel is always the protector of Iligan City. There have been old myths regarding our patron saint where he protected Iligan,” he said.
“We can still hear about the old stories in the Japanese invasion where the air force who were supposed to attack Iligan City, could not see the city, as Senor San Miguel protected us.”
“Thus, these are the beliefs of the Iliganons, that Senor San Miguel is the protector of the city of Iligan,” he added.
Devotee Anna Liza Lluch of Barangay San Miguel said Saint Michael the Archangel healed her after an accident in a department store six months ago which made her unable to walk.
Lluch said she asked the intercession of Saint Michael the Archangel and became well, enabling her to join the procession.
"Happy kaayo ko, ma feel gyud nako nga naa siya sa akong tupad, nga nia siya sa Iligan nagapanalipud (I am very happy, I can feel him right beside me, that he is watching over Iligan City),” said Lluch.
Pagpakanaug also signaled the start of the nine-day novena Mass in preparation for the Diyandi Festival on September 29 in honor of the patron saint.
Police here said the procession was generally peaceful.
Iligan police spokesperson Police Major Zandrex Panolong said network interruption and force multipliers maintained order in the procession.