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Tuesday, January 21, 2003
City to improve Sports Center for Sinulog ‘04
By Charmaine Y. Rodriguez
WITH plans to bring the Sinulog to the world next year, the Cebu City Government will spend for improvements at the Cebu City Sports Center and push for more incentives for out-of-town participants.
Mayor Tomas Osmeña wants to bring the international media here and is proposing the construction of lounges and five-star quality comfort rooms at the sports center by 2004.
“I think we have a product to showcase,” he said of the annual celebration, which draws domestic and foreign tourists to Cebu.
Apart from tourists, other local government units in the country are sending groups to compete in grand parade. For this year alone, the City Government hosted nine of them.
The mayor believes it is “very discouraging” for visiting contingents not to win anything so he wants more incentives for them so they will come back.
Winners in this year’s grand parade, however, pledged to join again next year and come up with new and better concepts for the competition.
Daanbantayan Mayor Maria Luisa Loot, Tangub City Vice Mayor Edemar Alota and Parañaque City Mayor Joey Marquez, in separate interviews during yesterday’s awarding ceremonies at the sports center, said they will return next year.
After a celebration last Sunday that saw fewer hitches than the ones in previous years, the crowd turnout, believed to be more than 15,000, overwhelmed organizers yesterday.
Osmeña, in his speech, thanked all the visitors and lauded Sinulog 2003 overall chairman and Vice Mayor Michael Rama and Sinulog Foundation executive director Ricky Ballesteros for the success of the celebration.
Tangub City’s Tribu Sinanduloy, which won again the first prize in the Sinulog-based category, and Tribu Cogon of Pardo Elementary School, second prize winner in the free interpretation category, were still crowd favorites.
Jojin Pascual, Sinanduloy’s choreographer, said spectators can expect “something different and something new” next year.
Joining the Sinulog is part of the city’s way to promote their place, said Mayor Alota, while City Administrator Tessie Lumanta revealed the cash prizes will be for the dancers, all public school students.
Although they won a total of P450,000, including the prizes for winning best in costume and best in street dancing, their City Government spent more than P1 million for costumes and props.
Loot, for her part, said they spent about P600,000, although the Provincial Government, through Gov. Pablo Garcia, and barangays in Daanbantayan also contributed for the needs of the group that won first place and best in costume in the free interpretation category.
For next year, they will come back with two contingents joining the Sinulog-based and free interpretation categories, Loot said.
Although Parañaque City’s contingent slipped to fourth place after winning the top prize in the free interpretation category last year, Marquez said what matters to them is the “renewing of friendships” among cities and the promotion of Parañaque City.
“I think we came in too strong. Masyadong futuristic siguro,” he said of their presentation, which he confirmed, cost them over P2 million.
Judging from the “world-class” performances this year, Osmeña believes Cebu is ready to promote Sinulog internationally.
“This is our way of stealing the limelight from Manila. We’ll leave them behind. We’ll just go on our own,” he said.
Apart from winners in the street dancing competition, persons and companies behind the best floats, higantes, puppets and visual merchandising during the celebration were also awarded yesterday.
(January 21, 2003 issue)
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