Surabaya, East Java (ANTARA) – The Surabaya City Government, East Java, suggested that the Surabaya Vaganza flora and cultural parade be included in the 2024 Kharisma Event Nusantara (KEN) of the Tourism and Creative Economy Ministry.”We have registered this (Surabaya Vaganza) in the KEN. Insya Allah (God willing), next year there will be two events (from Surabaya) listed in the KEN,” Surabaya Mayor Eri Cahyadi said here on Sunday. He expected that the Surabaya Vaganza flora cultural parade and the Rujak Uleg Festival to be included in KEN next year. KEN is a calendar of tourism and cultural art events throughout Indonesia compiled by the ministry. He said the team from the ministry will assess the order of the parade implementation, such as whether it disturbs the street or not. The Surabaya Vaganza event which was held on Saturday (May 27) was to welcome the Surabaya City Anniversary and it went orderly and lively. The mayor also thanked the city residents who participated in the event orderly. “Alhamdulillah (Thank God), the cultural parade went smoothly, and the people’s enthusiasm was extraordinary. From the afternoon to the night, the residents had remained orderly,” he said. The parade started from the Tugu Pahlawan area (Heroes Monument) and walked to the Pemuda Hall. Cahyadi said that in the last year’s Surabaya Vaganza, some spectators entered the pathway, disturbing the parade. Therefore, the Surabaya City Government this year tightened the security so the event could be implemented neatly. “This is certainly for the people of Surabaya. It ought to be comfortable, so there would be no incidents of people abruptly crossing and being hit by parade participants or cars. Previously, some people were almost hit by the parade car,” he said. Earlier, East Java Governor Khofifah Indar Parawansa said that the Rujak Uleg Festival is part of tradition and culture in Surabaya and can be used to improve the regional economy. She urged East Java residents to enliven this event as one of the tourist attractions. The 2023 Rujak Uleg Festival was held on Saturday evening, May 6.

Source: Antara News Agency