PRIZES and subsidies for the contingents of Sinulog 2025 will be increased, with prizes for puppeteers and higantes rising by up to P25,000, and subsidies climbing up to P1.5 million.
Cebu City Mayor Raymond Alvin Garcia, in a press conference on Monday, Oct. 21, 2024, at the Cebu City Hall, said the prizes for the puppeteers and higantes will be increased from P75,000 to P100,000 for the first prize; from P50,000 to P75,000, second prize; and from P30,000 to P50,000, third prize.
Garcia said subsidies for the dancing contingents will also be increased, with out-of-town contingents set to receive P1.5 million, up from the previous P800,000.
Each contingent from Cebu City and Cebu Province will receive P1 million.
For this year’s Sinulog, each contingent from Cebu City and Cebu Province received P700,000 in subsidies.
Garcia said that they will increase the subsidy for contingents from Cebu Province to P1 million only, since the Provincial Government will also provide subsidies.
Garcia said the registration fee for puppeteers and higantes will also be waived for the first time in the Sinulog Festival history.
Individuals who join the puppeteers and higantes category usually pay P1,000 for the registration.
“That is a form of art, and we want to promote art and the artists,” said Garcia.
Garcia also said all government agencies that will join the float competition category can enter the venue for free so that they can promote their respective agencies.
As of the third week of October, 17 contingents have already confirmed their participation in the Sinulog Festival 2025.
Garcia is positive that more will join next year’s Sinulog when organizers start the marketing efforts in social media platforms.
“Once it is out, I’m sure more (will join), especially with the subsidy,” he said.
Garcia said next year’s venue, which will be in Cebu City Sports Center, is also a factor why more contingents want to participate.
“By this time last year, there were only around five, but now we already have 17,” he said.
When asked if there are contingents outside the country that wished to join the festival, Garcia said a contingent from South Korea had expressed its intention to participate.
The City Government will also use again the original theme of Sinulog, which is “One Beat, One Dance, One Vision.”
“That simple. No more ‘Sinulog to the world,’ ‘Sinulog to the Philippines.’ It would be really simple,” he said.
The festival will be held on Jan. 19, 2025, the third Sunday of the month. / JPS