TAGBILARAN CITY, Bohol  (PIA) -- Bohol is now preparing for the largest homecoming of overseas-based Boholanos in time for the Bohol Day and the Sandugo festival in July. 

The Tigum sa mga Bol-anon sa Tibuok Kalibutan (TBTK) will be held for the first time this year after the pandemic. 

It is expected to bring back the biggest delegation of Boholanos from overseas who were not able to come home due to the travel restrictions during the pandemic. 

“This year’s homecoming is an apt thanksgiving to God for sparing us from the pandemic that took many lives, and to the people who prayed for us to get past that trial,” said Dr. Disi Alba, organizer of this year’s TBTK, during the Kapihan sa PIA program. 

First hosted by the province in late 1990s, TBTK has been conducted every four years until the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The TBTK was first conceptualized to raise capital for an economically struggling Bohol in the late 1990s by inviting Boholanos abroad to come home and celebrate family and class reunions, tours, and events during the Sandugo Festival. 

By doing so, the local economy would benefit from the ripple effect of consumer spending from the balikbayans.

It is also an opportunity for the children of Boholanos who grew up abroad to immerse themselves in the local culture and get to know their roots in Bohol. 

Alba said the 2024 TBTK is expected to attract the biggest crowd of returning Boholanos this year. 

She added that they are partnering with the provincial and Tagbilaran City governments as well as the Diocese of Tagbilaran and Talibon for the line-up of activities. 

Dr. Rhine Pamaong, president of the Confederation of Boholanos in the USA and Canada (CONBUSAC), is also organizing the Bohol in the USA and Canada to come home and join the weeklong events. 

This year’s activities include a series of investment fora where Bohol officials present pre-identified viable business ventures for funding which successful Boholanos could possibly finance. 

Alba added that they are also targeting the young generation of Boholanos to show them a glimpse of their parents’ lives in Bohol before they migrated overseas. 

“The homecoming also presents this opportunity for the youth from Boholano families abroad to learn and understand the local culture through immersions, community engagements and civil action,” said Alba. 

The Sangguniang Kabataan in Bohol is also hosting some of the events during the TBTK. 

“I am inviting Boholanos around the world to come home for the TBTK,” said Alba.  

The Kapihan sa PIA is a radio forum that is streamed live over PIA Bohol Facebook page and YouTube channel in this link: http://bit.ly/3SbLfvv. (RAHC/PIA7 Bohol)