SIXTEEN contingents will perform at the Sinulog Grand Parade and Grand Ritual Showdown that will be held at the South Road Properties (SRP) on Sunday, January 21, 2024, of which 14 will be contending for the prizes.
Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama said only two of the 14 competing contingents are out-of-towners.
“These are from Canlaon City (in Negros Oriental) and San Jose town (in Dinagat Islands),” he said in a mix of Cebuano and English on Tuesday, January 16.
He said the remaining contingents are those that competed in the Sinulog sa Dakbayan, which was held at the Cebu City Sports Center (CCSC) last Saturday, January 13.
These include the 11 contingents that hail from barangays in Cebu City, led by grand winner Barangay Guadalupe and followed by Barangays Banilad, Binaliw, Inayawan, Mabolo, Suba, Labangon, San Roque, Sapangdaku, San Nicolas Proper and T. Padilla.
Tribu Divinohanon of Divino Amore Academy, a Catholic school in Mohon, Talisay City, will also participate as the only non-Cebu City contingent among the 12 delegates from the Sinulog sa Dakbayan.
No Cebu Province
Rama said none of the contingents from the towns and cities under Cebu Province which competed in the Sinulog sa Lalawigan that was held at the CCSC last Sunday, Jan. 14, have shown any interest in joining the Sinulog Festival at the SRP.
“None, none, none,” he said.
Last Monday, January 15, Rama invited the top five winners of the Sinulog sa Lalawigan to participate in the Sinulog at the SRP.
He said the Sinulog Foundation Inc. (SFI) will extend a warm welcome to the Sinulog sa Lalawigan winners, led by the Carcar City contingent, which outperformed 15 other contingents in the ritual showdown, musical ensemble and costume.
In addition to Carcar City, the other winners in the ritual showdown were Tribu Talisaynon from Talisay City (second place), Tribu Dagitabnon from the City of Naga (third place), Mandaue City (fourth place), and Tribu Masadyaon from Toledo City (fifth place).
Prizes
The mayor said the cash prizes of winners in the Sinulog Grand Parade and Grand Ritual Showdown will be the same as last year.
Based on the document the mayor presented to the media, awards will be handed out to the top five winners in the free interpretation and Sinulog-based categories during the ritual showdown.
The grand winner will receive P1,000,000; second place will get P700,000; third place will get P500,000; fourth place will get P300,000; and fifth place will get P200,000.
Carcar City, the ritual showdown grand champion in last Sunday’s Sinulog sa Lalawigan, received P3.5 million; second-place Talisay City received P2.4 million; third-place City of Naga, P1.5 million; fourth-place Mandaue City, P1.2 million; and fifth-place Toledo City, P900,000.
The bulk of the prize money for last Sunday’s Sinulog sa Lalawigan came from the Cebu Provincial Government.
When asked if he planned to raise the cash prizes of Sinulog Festival winners, the mayor replied, “We are not competing.”
However, he said they might tackle the matter during his meeting with members of the executive committee and board of trustees of the SFI on Tuesday afternoon, January 16.
“Nothing is permanent. We will never know. I will have an execom meeting and we’ll never know… Will the prizes stay? The prizes will decrease, or will it increase?” Rama said.
The same set of cash prizes will be given to winners of the street dancing category, which include P1 million for the grand prize.
Other contingents
Rama said that aside from the 14 competing contingents, the Masskara Festival of Bacolod City and Chunchun Nongak Preservation Association of the Republic of Korea will participate as guest contingents.
Meanwhile, four guest contingents will be participating in the street dancing during the grand parade. These are Nagkahiusang Pamilyang Cebu Gen, Barangay Bulacao powered by Alpha Kappa Rho, Lumad Basakanon of Barangay San Nicolas and the Cebu City Government.
The mayor said they have yet to determine the number of floats, puppeteers and higantes that will be participating on Sunday.