Monday, January 17, 2005
Tourism secretary lauds Sinulog celebration
Linette C. Ramos

CEBU CITY -- With spectacular performances, fireworks and hundreds of tourists attending, the Sinulog held on to its reputation as the country's festival of all festivals, Tourism Secretary Joseph Ace Durano said.

Durano lauded the Sinulog Foundation Inc. and the Cebu City Government for setting an example for other provinces on what a real festival should be.

"I can see that it's the only festival that has become an international festival. It's the festival of all festivals and has become a benchmark for all festivals in the country," he said Sunday.

Bomb threats that turned out to be hoaxes kept the police busy, while warring fraternities Alpha Kappa Rho and Tau Gamma kept the cops on their toes, but no major disruptions marred the parade.

Elsewhere in the city, however, three unidentified men were killed, in attacks that echoed a spate of vigilante-style attacks last December.

Overall, Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña was impressed not only with the performances but also with the crowd that helped make the Sinulog's 25th anniversary celebration peaceful.

For the first time since 1980, the Department of Tourism (DOT) gave the Sinulog Foundation P950,000 to cover expenses.

Vice Mayor Michael Rama, Sinulog Foundation chairman, thanked all those who made the event successful and peaceful.

"It was very great, especially since the hitches were very negligible. But I believe we can still enhance it to make it better next year," he said.

Durano added that because of its success in the last 25 years, the Sinulog has attracted thousands of tourists every year and has encouraged other local government units (LGUs) to invest in their own festivals.

He said the DOT will work to ensure there will be adequate hotel rooms to accommodate more tourists next year.

Judging from the huge number of spectators and participants, the organizers believe Sunday was the best Sinulog celebration so far.

The organizers estimated the crowd at the Cebu City Sport Center at 30,000 since the bleachers were packed and thousands still scrambled for seats in the grounds.

For the man who started the Sinulog festival, its silver anniversary was "better than Rio, better than the Las Vegas shows."

"I'm very proud, I never thought that what we started 25 years ago will become this big," said retired customs collector David Odilao, a wide smile on his face.

His friends from abroad, who watched the show from the main grandstand, were so amazed they promised to bring a delegation next year to witness how the Cebuanos honor the Señor Sto. Niño.

"Let us try to protect the Sinulog. I'm hoping the police are able to solve this the fastest way they can," Odilao said, referring to recent incidents that have marred the celebration, such as the rape of a domestic tourist in a downtown lodge.

The audience at the sports center was treated to performances of Cebu's artists, bands, the Best of Cebu dance troupes and 47 dancing contingents.

A modern Sinulog performance by the Cebu City Dancesport Team with Councilor Jocelyn Pesquera capped the festivities, followed by a 10-minute fireworks display, which cost the City Government P275,000.

While Osmeña wanted all out-of-town contingents to have maximum use of the "intelligent" lights, this only worked for a few contingents since the parade ended earlier than expected.

He added the parade next year will have to start at noon up to late evening to give all contingents a chance to take advantage of lighting so their performance will look better on television.

The sound system and special lights, used for the first time this year, cost the organizers P150,000.

Ricky Ballesteros, Sinulog Foundation executive director, said they even had to stretch the program and intermission numbers just to have as many contingents as possible perform at night.

They also vowed to be stricter in screening the costumes, choreography and number of performers next year after the costume of the Landonian Tribe drew flak from organizers.

Ballesteros and Dolores Suzara of the foundation frowned on the all-male performers' skimpy costumes, with only patches of cloth covering their private parts.

Osmeña congratulated Sunday's crowd for keeping the festivities peaceful, unlike what happened in Aklan province where seven members of the police were killed.

"What made it really different from the earlier Sinulog was that the crowd was very manageable, dili bastos, they were excellent. Even if there was potential trouble between the frats, it was peaceful and the roads were safe," he said in an interview after the festivities at the grandstand.

Osmeña added that the incident in Aklan, which was also celebrating their Ati-Atihan Festival, should serve as a warning to Cebuanos to be vigilant at all times.

To improve the traffic flow in the city, the mayor will make next year's Sinulog procession and parade "car-less" days.

The flow of traffic in the city was so bad that Osmeña decided only motorbikes, vans and buses carrying passengers will be allowed to enter during the Sinulog parade.

Osmeña said he will also provide the out-of-town contingents with more suitable accommodations to avoid disrupting classes in some public schools where the contingents are staying. (With RHM)

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Monday, January 17, 2005
Tangub wins with ‘carnival’
Rene H. Martel

TANGUB City took back what it lost, while Barangay Basak-San Nicolas showed off its class again in yesterday’s Sinulog silver anniversary grand parade.

Tribu Sinanduloy of Tangub danced its way to the top of 18 Sinulog-based contingents by wowing seven judges with its superior concept and theme of a pre-war carnival in Cebu.

Its closest rival was Compostela National High School, which unseated it last year as Sinulog-based grand parade champion. Compostela settled for second this time around.

Basak-San Nicolas, which carried the name Tribu Mangkokopras instead of last year’s Lumad Basakanon, romped away with the top prize for the second straight year in the free interpretation category.

Unlike in 2004, though, the judges had a long time choosing the champions because the decision was not unanimous.
“Unlike the past year, when the differences were very glaring. Even the crowd’s favorites varied (this time),” said Dr. Larry Gabao, chairman of the board of judges of the Sinulog-based category.

Gabao is president of the Philippine Folk Dance Society and presidential assistant for culture and the arts.
He said the nine judges in the free interpretation category had the same predicament.

And although they make up only 10 percent of the criteria, “concept and theme” mattered the most in the judges’ decision, since choreography (30 percent) and performance (30 percent) was more or less even among participants, said Gabao.

Tangub presented as backdrop the carnival in Cebu during the 1920s to 30s. Its theme: how the devotion to the Sto. Niño endured despite the influx of foreign influences.

Aside from a trophy, Tangub City and Basak-San Nicolas will each receive P500,000 while their choreographers will get P30,000 each.

Tangub also copped the best in musicality award, which emphasized the use of creative instruments from native materials, and will take home P50,000.

Basak-San Nicolas’ fast-paced steps and hand movements, with Yakan-inspired costumes, harked back to its similar first-place finish last year.

But this time, it used the storyline of coconut gatherers giving praise after one of them, hit on the head by a falling coconut, was revived and cured by the Niño.

Star dancer

Its crowd-pleaser from last year, six-year-old Jercom Lemon Beck, was still among the contingent’s dancers.

Basak-San Nicolas and Compostela will each receive P100,000 for being adjudged best in costume in their respective categories.

Compostela choreographer Dax Barlaan said the off-white costume was inspired by a production called Alsin del Siglo of cultural dance researcher Ramon Obusan.

“It was a turn-of-the-century apparel of men in uniform in the Philippines,” he said.

In the Sinulog-based category, Compostela got P300,000 while Colawin National High School in Argao town, which took third place, earned P200,000. Bayawan City, Negros Oriental was fourth (P100,000) while Hugpong sa Kabataan sa Punta Princesa was fifth (P50,000)

Prizes

As for the Free Interpretation category, Tribu Iliganon of Iligan City, with its Maranao-inspired costume and theme of royalty paying homage to the Sto. Niño, took second place and earned P300,000.

Bonok-Bonok Marad-jao Karadjao of Surigao City was third (P200,000) followed by Mambajao, Camiguin (P100,000) and Tribu Muro Ami placed fifth (P50,000).

Choreographers for second place get P20,000; third, P15,000; fourth, P10,000; and fifth, P5,000 in both Sinulog-based and free interpretation categories.

Surigao City likewise won second place (P100,000) in street dancing, which Yagyag Festival of Barangay Cangmating, Sibulan, Negros Oriental lorded over, to earn P200,000. Compostela took the third spot for P50,000.

Ricky Ballesteros, Sinulog Foundation Inc. executive director, reminded all winning contingents, including those in the special awards categories, to show up at the Cebu City Sports Center at 1 p.m. today for the awarding ceremony and repeat performance.

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Sunday, January 16. 2005
6 small vessels run into trouble, but fluvial parade’s crowd unhurt
Garry Cabotaje

A BANCA keeled over and two cargo vessels ran aground, in incidents that marred an otherwise orderly fluvial procession yesterday morning.

Three small boats trying to get closer to the “galleon” that carried the holy icons of the Señor Sto. Niño and Our Lady of Guadalupe also ran aground off Pier 7 in Cebu City.

But the motorboats managed to pull themselves off the shoal, saving the passengers from danger.
A boat overturned past 8 a.m., but all seven boat passengers were immediately rescued, said Cebu Coast Guard (CG) Chief Elson Hermogino.

But Hermogino said he only got a sketchy report of the incident. He told Sun.Star instead to call up his deputy chief Lemuel Alquiza, who said the incident was not reported to the CG headquarters.

What was officially confirmed, Alquiza said, was the running aground of mv Lady of Divine Grace, a cargo ship of Medallon Shipping Corp., on Banilad shoal off Pier 7, Cebu City.

All 80 ship passengers, most of them relatives and friends, were safe, he said.

Alquiza, however, could not confirm if the second cargo vessel had also run aground in the same site.

Quoting ship owner Maximiano Fulache, Alquiza said they opted not to maneuver the ship so as not to hit smaller boats.

The CG ordered Capt. Reuben Alejandrino, the ship skipper, to submit a marine protest.
Hermogino said all participating vessels had been reminded during the final briefing about the shallow portion of the Mactan Channel.

“So far it has been very successful, the incidents were manageable and there was no casualty,” he added.

Although the participating boats, numbering more than 80, left the Ouano wharf, Mandaue City past 7 a.m., the floating armada arrived in Cebu City before 9 a.m. (See related story, A16)

Devotees welcomed the glass-encased Señor Sto. Niño with firecrackers, balloons and the honking of ships. Three private planes showered flowers and confetti on the flotilla.

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HOLDING on to the Child Jesus and being connected to the rest of the faithful is the true meaning of the “translacion” or translocation, an annual highlight of the Fiesta Señor.

Msgr. Cris Garcia, archdiocesan commission on worship chairman, told thousands of devotees this during the 7 a.m. Misa de Translacion in the Pilgrim Center of the Basilica Minore del Sto. Niño yesterday.

Prior to the Misa de Translacion, a 4:30 a.m. Penitential Walk with Mary unfolded from Fuente Osmeña to the basilica. The image of Our Lady of Guadalupe “reunited” with the image of Señor Sto. Niño.

Thousands of devotees endured the long walk to hear the Misa de Translacion.

Some joined the motorcade going to Mandaue City, where both images were brought to the St. Joseph National Shrine in preparation for today’s fluvial parade.

“Let’s encourage each other to reject sin and let’s go with Jesus to heaven because this is the meaning of the translacion. Our rest in God is our arrival in heaven,” Garcia said.

Returning today

Using a passage from St. Paul, Garcia said, the central message of the translacion is that “He snatched us from the power of darkness and led us to the light.”

In keeping with this year’s theme, “Oneness in the Santo Niño through his Mother and the Eucharist,” Garcia said a devotee can keep his relationship with God by constantly attending the Holy Mass.

Thousands of devotees waved to the two images as they left the Pilgrim Center for St. Joseph’s Shrine at past 8 a.m.

The images will be brought back today to the basilica during the fluvial procession.

The renewal of baptismal vows and the reenactment of the first wedding will then be staged.

Saturday, January 15, 2005
82 boat owners enlist to escort Niño image in retracing history

THE number of participating vessels that have officially registered with the Cebu Coast Guard (CG) for today’s fluvial parade has reached 82, surpassing last year’s 60.

CG Chief Elson Hermogino expects the number of seacraft to reach more than 100 because some unregistered boats usually join the flotilla during the parade, an annual activity in honor of the Señor Sto. Niño.

Small motorboats assigned to occupy the first and second divisions of the fluvial formation will converge under the old Mactan-
Mandaue Bridge before 6 a.m.

The third division, composed of bigger seacraft weighing a maximum of 250 gross tons, will group at the Ouano wharf on the Mandaue City side.

The late registrants and unregistered boats will occupy the fourth division.

But instead of bigger vessels leading the flotilla, the small vessels will now take the lead in the fluvial parade.

Hermogino said all vessels must stop tailing the lead group upon reaching the Ludo and Luym wharf in Cebu City to ensure the smooth docking of mv Trinidad, the “galleon” carrying the Señor Sto. Niño.

The CG will deploy 20 patrol craft and rubber boats with more than 100 sea marshals, CG auxiliary members, and rescue teams on board.

Hermogino said that a medical team will board St. John the Baptist, a vessel owned by Nora Ross.

He reminded the boat passengers not to blast firecrackers and drink liquor during the two-hour fluvial procession.

Hermogino called on boat owners to avoid overloading and equip their vessels instead with enough life vests and other safety gadgets.

As part of tradition, the images of Sto. Niño and Our Lady of Guadalupe were brought to the National Shrine of St. Joseph Parish in Mandaue City yesterday.

The mv Trinidad, the designated “galleon” owned by the Ouano clan in Mandaue City, will bring the two icons back to Cebu City via Pier 1 this morning. (GC)

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AFTER months of grueling practice and with preparation costs amounting to millions, out-of-town contingents are ready to go back to the roots of the Sinulog and emphasize the prayer-dance concept tomorrow.

There will still be gigantic props and colorful costumes but choreographers admit there is a need to focus more on the spiritual aspect of the Sinulog, especially on its 25th anniversary.

As in the previous years, dances will be offered as thanksgiving for a bountiful harvest, protection from calamities and for the gift of the Holy Child.

For Tangub City contingent choreographer Emelio Pascual, the silver anniversary celebration of the Sinulog calls for a stronger devotion to the Infant Jesus through dance.

“Amid all the pomp, we have to go back to the prayer-dance concept and bring back the spiritual element because it’s the very thing that has kept the Sinulog alive. Our dance will have that religious focus,” he told Sun.Star after the Sinulog Founation Inc.’s meeting with the choreographers yesterday.

Silver motif

The Tangub City Government, a consistent winner in the annual grand parade, spent some P3 million for props, costumes, travel expenses and food of the performers during practices.

And since it is the Sinulog’s 25th year, props will be crucial to some contingents in reliving its history.
Among them is the use of silver costumes and accessories and the parade of 25 Sto. Niño images.

Another contingent will also use huge mirrors to literally and figuratively reflect on the 25-year history of the Sinulog and their devotion to the Sto. Niño.

Participating for the first time, the Sibulan, Negros Oriental contingent will offer their dance for the bountiful harvest of land crabs.
Its Yag-yag Festival, where dancers imitate the crabs’ movements that reflect unity, solidarity and self-sacrifice, won for Sibulan the grand prize in the “Wow Philippines Best of the Best Festivals” in 2003.

Thanksgiving

“It’s only our first time to join, that is why we don’t expect to win. We just want to thank the Sto. Niño for the rich harvest in the past year and this thanksgiving and devotion will be clearly presented in our dance,” said David Ang, the contingent’s choreographer.

The contingent from Mambajao, Camiguin Island will also be performing a thanksgiving ritual for Sto. Niño’s blessings and the bountiful harvest of lanzones in their province.

Choreographer Val Lozada assured the public of an entertaining performance, “which will have a deeper religious meaning.”

Also focusing more on the spiritual aspect of the Sinulog is the contingent from Tanjay, Negros Oriental, whose performance will depict the native warriors’ acceptance and veneration of the Sto. Niño.

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SEVEN Korean tourists, in town for the festivities, lost their personal belongings to thieves last Thursday.
Of the seven, only one was able to recover his lost watch.

Jae Young Yoo, 54, reported that he lost his Longines wristwatch while he was taking a bath in his hotel room at 9 a.m. yesterday.

Jae reported to the Theft and Robbery Section that while he was taking a bath, a woman identified only as Maricor and a male companion were in his room at the St. Moritz Hotel in Gorordo Ave.

Jae had met them earlier and brought them to his room.

When he got out, he noticed that the wristwatch was no longer on the table where he left it.
So were his two guests.

Police, in a follow-up operation led by SPO2 Edgardo Gallado,located Jason Fernandez, 18, in Lahug, who had the watch.

Since Jae refused to file a case against Fernandez, the latter was released.

At 3 p.m., six other Koreans lost their plane tickets and passports after one of them lost her bag that contained these.

Kim Jae Hun, 26, Shun Won Sang, 25, Park Jin Sook, 38, Lee Jung Woo, 11, Lee Seung Woo, seven, and Choi Mi Hye, 23, went to Bo’s Coffee Club at the ground floor of Robinson’s Department Store.

As they were arranging the chairs in the coffee shop to accommodate them, unidentified thieves picked up Choi’s bag, which was left on one of the tables.

When they went back, the bag was gone.

Aside from plane tickets and passports of the group, Choi lost her digital camera, her wallet, $40, P600, a gold necklace and a pair of gold earrings. (MEA)

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THE Cebu City Department of Public Services (DPS) expects the volume of garbage to double during the Sinulog grand parade.

This means the City’s garbage trucks, garbage collectors and street cleaners will be working more hours.
DPS chief Dionisio Gualiza said that since the start of the Fiesta Señor last Jan. 6, the volume of trash in the city has increased.

Plastic bags and plastic food packaging, water bottles and Styrofoam meal packs, which are non-biodegradable, make up most of the trash.

During normal days, about 500 tons of garbage are produced in Cebu City, said Gualiza.

Dawn patrol

A special collection scheme was implemented at the start of Sinulog activities, which include sweeping and garbage collection in Fuente Osmeña at dawn.

Most nighttime Sinulog-related activities are held in Fuente Osmeña, where food stalls have also been put up since the start of the Fiesta Señor.

Tomorrow, street sweepers and garbage collectors will begin cleaning the route of the grand parade starting at 9 p.m.

“Fuente Osmeña would be last because usually people stay there until dawn,” he said.

DPS personnel will also clean up after the fireworks display at the Cebu City Sports Complex, Cebu Business Park and Plaza Independencia.

Incentive

Gualiza said all street cleaners and garbage collectors of the city, except those who are sick, will be working overnight after the Sinulog grand parade.

They will not get any salary or extra pay for working at night and on a Sunday. But last year, Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña gave each of them a sack of rice.

Despite the absence of a promise for incentive, Gualiza said street cleaners and garbage collectors have agreed to work.

“This is part of their devotion to the Sto. Niño and an act of public service,” Gualiza said. (LAP)

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THE Visayan Electric Co. (Veco) assured the safety of its distribution lines and other installations during the Sinulog grand parade tomorrow.

To help secure the parade route, Veco will deploy 14 teams who will be in their assigned posts starting 6 a.m. Sunday.

Veco has been assisting preparations for the Sinulog grand parade since its inception 25 years ago.

Veco teams can be found at the Cebu City Sports Complex, Fuente Osmeña, Gen. Maxilom Ave. (near Rustan’s), in front of Colegio dela Inmaculada Concepcion, near University of San Carlos main campus and on Imus St.

Meanwhile, the Metropolitan Cebu Water District will set up 21 free drinking water stations during the grand parade.

Two stations will be located near the Basilica del Sto. Niño for devotees.

Some stations will be found along the parade route: at the corner of P. del Rosario and Junquera Sts., P. del Rosario and Pedro Cui, in front of the Department of Education building along Imus St., Lorega and Imus extension, in front of Sacred Heart School, near Cherry Court on Gen. Maxilom Ave., Fuente Osmeña and several points along Osmeña Blvd. (LAP)

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MORE than Cebu’s busiest tourism and religious festival, the Sinulog has also become a time of homecoming.

After going abroad almost four years ago, Ferlyn Bacalla Gonzales of Punta Princesa, Cebu City, came home again, in time for the 25th Sinulog celebration.

Gonzales, a nurse, said she decided to bring her husband Felix and their 20-month-old daughter Valerie so they too will know how the Cebuanos celebrate a fiesta. The couple met in Dallas, Texas in 2001.

“I am bringing my husband here for him to see how beautiful Cebu is and how hospitable the Cebuanos are. Perhaps Felix can even give his own testimony that will help promote Cebu when we get back to Texas,” Ferlyn said.

The Gonzales family was among some 300 balikbayans and foreigners who arrived yesterday to attend the Sinulog’s religious and cultural activities.

A reception jointly organized by the government and private sector awaited the guests, who arrived in Mactan at 9:15 a.m. on board Philippine Airlines flight PR-847 from Los Angeles and Manila.

Showcasing Cebu

While retracing their heritage and enjoying the festivities, the balikbayans also contribute greatly to the Cebuano economy, Vice Mayor Michael Rama pointed out.

Their arrival alone can contribute to the realization of the government’s target of five million tourists from 2005 to 2010, said Provincial Board (PB) Member Agnes Magpale.

“I’m sure that the balikbayans and foreign visitors will speak about the hospitality of the Cebuanos when they go back to the United States,” said Magpale, chairperson of the PB’s committee on tourism.

Foreign Affairs Regional Director Leon Rodeon Rojas, chairman of the committee on international visitors and guests of the Sinulog Foundation Inc., said they are ensuring the safety and comfort of the balikbayans and tourists while in Cebu.

Those who were welcomed at the Mactan-Cebu International Airport yesterday were mostly listed in package tours that included special air are rates, discounted hotel accommodations and tickets to several shows related to the Sinulog, said Tetta Baad of Balik Cebu.

General Manager Karl Hudson of Cebu City Marriott Hotel said they received two-month advance bookings in connection with the Sinulog.

Among the first things the visitors saw was an image of the Sto. Niño placed on a bamboo altar in the airport’s baggage claim area—which quickly drew tourists who posed for souvenir pictures.

Aside from the batch, more balikbayans and foreign tourists are expected to arrive, some of whom may not opt to join package tours, said Alice Queblatin, president of the Cebu Association of Tour Operators.

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UNFAZED by the dwindling number of Sinulog contingents this year, Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña said he prefers to have fewer entries with better performances to attract more tourists in the coming years.

Osmeña said having too many entries for the Sinulog grand parade only makes the event highly commercialized, giving less priority to the devotion to the Sto. Niño.

A total of 45 contingents will compete in the Sinulog-based and free interpretation categories this year, or five contingents fewer than the total number of participants last year.

Loss of focus

“It doesn’t matter if we have fewer contingents because what’s important is quality, not quantity. Sometimes some entries are getting to be too ridiculous already that the event gets too highly commercialized,” he said.

Osmeña recalled seeing floats promoting a movie or contingents throwing t-shirts to spectators, with only a miniature-sized Sto. Niño icon on their floats.

To hold on to the Sinulog’s reputation as a national event, the City Government will focus on making the parade look grander on television since it will be aired live on international channels for eight hours.

All for show

Organizers will spend P500,000 for the flower arrangements on the stage alone to make the stage look better on TV, said the mayor.

“The emphasis will be for TV audience to appreciate it better. The ground audience will not suffer much but the focus will be on the international audience and out-of-town contingents will be allowed to promote their places,” Osmeña told a news conference yesterday.

Encouragement

He added that this will also encourage other local government units (LGUs) to join the Sinulog next year, especially since a number of LGUs will attend this Sunday’s parade as observers.

Since most of the winners in previous grand parades were out-of-town contingents, organizers arranged for the said contingents to perform at the later part of the program for them to have maximum use of stage lighting.

Osmeña also assured there will be no hometown decision in the judging of the winners, since all judges will be coming from Manila.

Reason

Dolores Suzara, project director of the Sinulog Foundation Inc., earlier attributed the decline in the number of contingents to the cancellation of the Sinulog sa Kabataan sa Dakbayan.

But even if the schools perform better in the achievement tests in the coming school years, the mayor said he will not revive the Sinulog sa Kabataan even if it means getting more contingents to join the parade. (LCR)

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Friday, January, 14, 2005
Rama makes no promise on request for extension

SINULOG overall chairman and Cebu City Vice Mayor Michael Rama promised to help traders occupying the stalls along Osmeña Blvd., who are asking that their stay be extended up to the end of February.

“I will discuss that with the Sinulog Foundation for assessment. We should be able to know if the extension is warranted,” he said.

The vice mayor said, though, that any extension will depend on the mayor.
“If the City Government will say enough is enough, that’s it. But I will do what I can,” Rama added.

Making ends meet

The traders told Sun.Star last week that their sales are far from brisk.
Unlike last year, when they earned enough profit by the end of December, they are still trying to gain a substantial sum.

One trader, who peddled ready-to-wear clothes from nearby Lapu-Lapu City, said she had made only P90 so far when Sun.Star visited her stall around 3 p.m.

That was always the case these past few days, she added.

Another was forced to reduce prices just to entice customers.

Lower rent

The traders are likewise asking the City Government to reduce the rent per stall so they will be interested to return next year.

For stalls near the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) building, the City Government charged P15,000 from Dec. 1, 2004 to the end of the month.

Stalls along Cebu City Central School were rented out for P25,000 each, while those along Abellana National School were for P30,000 each. (RHM)

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TO ENSURE smooth and successful coverage of the 2005 Sinulog Grand Parade and other related activities, a giant telecommunication firm will put up anew the Sinulog Media Center tomorrow at the Cebu City Sports Center.

Bayan Tel, in its second year of working with the Sinulog Foundation and the Cebu media, will provide journalists unlimited and free Internet access through six desktop computers, each with a DSL connection at 2MBPS, and four telephone lines for unlimited and free NDD calls.

To accommodate the needs of the media and to make the center more dynamic, the Sinulog Foundation will also provide airconditioning inside the center as well as “nice furniture and fixtures.”

Coverage respite

“We want your coverage to be a momentous success in bringing the news of the daylong celebration here and abroad via the Internet,” Rene delos Santos of Bayan Tel told a news conference yesterday.

Journalists who want to “take a brief time off from work can rest at the lounging area where they will enjoy free-flowing coffee and bottomless glasses of juice, water and snacks.”

Bayan Tel, led by its Vice President for the Visayas Ferdinand Buot, yesterday entered into and signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) with Ricky Ballesteros, executive director of the Sinulog Foundation Inc. for the undertaking.

Opening

Facilities at the Sinulog Media Center will open at 7 a.m. starting tomorrow until Jan. 17, said Rod Wycoco, sales and marketing manager of Bayan Tel.

Bayan Tel will also provide the media SMS information bulletin on newsworthy events at the center.

Delos Santos said the company will also be putting up a Bayan Tel booth at the Century 21 along Mango Ave. where Sinulog revelers can get a Henna tattoo for free if they purchase Blast cards, internet cards at a 40 percent discount.

Towels will also be given away for every card bought. (GAC)

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EVEN thieves travel by plane.

On the lookout for visiting criminal groups who came to strike during the Sinulog festival, the Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Bureau (CIIB) arrested five members of an alleged crime group who came from Metro Manila.

Three women and two men arrived on board a Cebu Pacific plane at 5:30 a.m. last Monday and, as soon as they reached uptown Cebu City, immediately stole from shoppers of Ayala Center Cebu that night.

CIIB Chief Pablo Labra II said that aside from the group, there are those from Davao, Cagayan de Oro and Ormoc who are reportedly arriving to strike in Cebu.

The CIIB is presently monitoring pension houses where groups from other provinces are expected to stay while they prey on tourists and locals in town for the Sinulog festivities.

Labra said they were 100 percent ready for the worst-case scenario, tapping all available units for deployment along the parade route.

He added that he and Vice Mayor Michael Rama even met with members of the United Muslims Federation of Cebu headed by lawyer Macaundas Hadjirasul to ask them to "help secure Cebu" for the Sinulog.

"Our Muslim brothers here have always been law-abiding citizens. But in case they notice new persons arriving, we hope they can help us monitor them," Labra said.

He explained that they did not want the incident in Quiapo, Metro Manila to happen in Cebu.

Arrested

Last Monday night, security guards of Ayala Center Cebu arrested Peligrina Arila Abella, Julie Donoso and Mary Ann Ferrer after two foreigners and a local pointed to them as the ones who stole their belongings.

At 7:20 p.m., the women stole the Samsung digital camera of Korean national Lee Eun Bi, 17, who was dining in a restaurant on the second floor.

Ten minutes later, they victimized Hideyuki Ino-mata, 26, taking his Fuji digital camera, P6,000 and 37,000 yen while he was using the escalator.

Later, at 7:40 p.m., Mira Tura of Barangay Luz was dining in one of the fastfood joints when they stole her Nokia 2100 cell phone when she was not looking.

Caught

After the victims complained to the management about the losses, two guards caught the three women, who were identified by the victims.

Their valuables were also recovered from the three women.

While Tura and Lee expressed their intentions to file a case against the women, Hideyuki declined and asked for his belongings back because he was scheduled to leave Cebu early yesterday morning.

A follow-up operation conducted by the CIIB led to the arrest of their two male companions in Tonros Apartelle on Gorordo Ave., where they checked in.

Leonardo Galiendes and Ceferino Ferrer of Tondo, Manila, were caught in possession of shabu paraphernalia and were then arrested.

Harmless woman

Labra told reporters yesterday that the five did not even look suspicious.

He added that Mary Ann was pregnant and to ordinary people, seemed harmless.

The five admitted to Labra that after the festivities were over, they were scheduled to return to Manila. A certain Leo from Villa Bulsita allegedly pays the bail bond if they get caught.

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Cebu City Councilor Sylvan Jakosalem said yesterday that Arroyo declined the City Government's invitation to attend this Sunday's grand parade.

"She told me on the phone earlier that she will not be able to make it because she is working overtime on tax reform measures, but the other members of the family will be here," he said.

First Gentleman Mike Arroyo and the President's children are expected to attend the festivities.

Arroyo also reportedly scheduled a visit to Cebu in the third week of January.

15 vans less

Because of restrictions imposed by the Office of the President in the Visayas, there will be fewer container vans at the Devotees' City to house pilgrims this year.

Instead of the usual 65 40-foot container vans, organizers of the Devotees' City will be able to put up only 50 this Friday to help secure the Malacañang in the South.

Councilor Jocelyn Pesquera, head of the project working committee, said Presidential Assistant for the Visayas Felix Guanzon and the Presidential Security Group (PSG) asked not to block the roads leading to Malacañang.

"Restrictions were imposed on us because of our location, so we also have to respect the Office of the President. The PSG instructed us not to block the roads in the area so we will put fewer vans," she said.

Even with only 50 vans, Pesquera said they will try their best to accommodate as much as 1,000 devotees in the vans provided by the Aboitiz Shipping company.

Last year, a total of 979 devotees slept in the vans.

Weekend only

Close to 1,000 devotees from other municipalities and other regions who can't afford to stay in pension houses avail themselves of the accommodations at Devotees City every Sinulog.

The facility, which will be put up just outside the Fort San Pedro, will have bathrooms, washrooms and portable comfort rooms.
Vendors selling various Sinulog souvenir items and candles will also be asked to sleep in the vans to keep them off the streets at night.

In a news conference yesterday, Pesquera assured that security in the area will be tight.

Registration for those who want to stay in the Devotees City will start at 2 p.m. on Thursday but they can only start occupying the vans by Friday morning.

They will be allowed to stay there until Monday morning, Pesquera said. (LCR)

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Newly assumed Police Regional Office (PRO) 7 Chief Eduardo Gador stressed this during his first command conference with police chiefs in Central Visayas at Camp Sergio Osmeña last Monday.

Gador ordered all police unit chiefs to closely monitor criminal elements who might take advantage of the yearly Sinulog, a highlight of the annual feast in honor of Señor Sto. Niño.

Supt. Carmelo Valmo-ria, PRO 7 community relations division chief, said Gador, who assumed last Saturday yet, is extra busy these days as he wants to ensure that no untoward incident happens during the Sinulog.

Tourists

"His concern is the safety of the tourists and spectators. So he ordered to intensify intelligence-gathering against lawless elements that might take advantage of the situation," he said.

Gador designated Cebu City Police Office (CCPO) Acting Director Melvin Gayotin as the Sinulog 2005 ground commander.
Valmoria said that all police units, including mobile group policemen, will be under the operational supervision and control of Gayotin.

He added that the 450 neophyte cops who are still undergoing a one-year PNP field training program will augment the regular police forces in Cebu City.

Commitment

In the same command conference, Gador reiterated his personal commitment to fight the proliferation of illegal drugs in Central Visayas, especially Cebu.

Aside from being the PRO 7 chief, Gador will also serve as the PNP Visayas area head, covering Regions 6, 7, and 8.

PNP Chief Edgar Ag-lipay, who graced the assumption at Camp Sergio Osmeña, called on the local police to intensify the campaign against illegal drugs.

In his speech, he even hinted the possibility of another shabu laboratory operating in the Visayas but he did not elaborate.(GC)

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Tuesday, January 11, 2005
8T volunteers to secure Sinulog

SOME 8,000 volunteers will help secure Sinulog’s 25th anniversary celebration, as Cebu City Vice Mayor Michael Rama appealed to vigilante groups and criminal elements to spare the event.

As early as yesterday, Rama identified the Fuente area, McArthur Blvd. and Plaza Independencia as areas to have maximum security, since criminals are more likely to stay here.

Rama, chairman of the Cebu City Police Advisory and Coordinating Council, fears that killings during the Sinulog might discourage tourists from coming back to Cebu.

Hospitable

“We should let them (vigilantes and criminals) know that we will have visitors and we have to make them feel safe so they can enjoy the festivities. Let’s all be hospitable to them,” he said.

Every year, thousands of domestic and foreign tourists flock to Cebu to honor the Sto. Niño, including contingents to the grand parade.

Rama also directed the police to ensure peace and order during the celebrations.

Even if they have already finalized all security measures, Rama said they will still anticipate the worst especially during the grand parade, since they cannot be too strict on the spectators.

Ricky Ballesteros, executive director of the Sinulog Foundation Inc., said 7,000 volunteers will monitor activities at the parade route while 600 communicators from all over Central Visayas will help relay problems to the organizers.

On alert

There will also be hundreds of medical volunteers, doctors and members of the Cebu Medical Society who will man the more than 20 medical stations along the route.

All hospitals will be on alert for emergency cases during the grand parade.

Since not all out-of-town contingents that have confirmed their participation to the parade were able to meet the deadline for registration yesterday, Ballesteros said they will extend the deadline up to Wednesday.

As of yesterday, only 38 contingents have registered for the Sinulog-based and free interpretation categories.

A total of 50 contingents participated last year.

“Except for the registration, everything is already set for the grand parade, including security and crowd control. We have to finalize the list of contingents so we can also work on the assembly points for the parade,” Ballesteros said yesterday. (LCR)

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TO ENSURE a smooth flow of this year’s fluvial procession, the Cebu Coast Guard (CG) has modified the formation of participating vessels.

Instead of bigger vessels leading the flotilla, their smaller counterparts will now take the lead in the fluvial parade, an annual activity in honor of the Señor Sto. Niño, on Saturday.

This as Cebu CG Commodore Alejandro Flora, Task Force Sinulog 2005 commander, yesterday called on boat owners wanting to participate in the fluvial procession to register at the CG office at Pier 3, Arellano Blvd., Cebu City.

The CG will only have until Friday to accept registrants.

“In previous years, we observed that big vessels can cause waves, which, in turn, affect the arrangement of the smaller ones. And we don’t want that to happen again this year,” said Cebu CG Deputy Chief Lemuel Alquiza.

Old setup

In previous fluvial processions, big conventional seacraft, such as passenger and cargo vessels, would usually occupy the first section of the parade, leaving those with lesser tonnage in the rear.

But this year, outrigger motorboats weighing three gross tons and below will now occupy both the first two divisions of the formation.

The first division will converge under the old Mactan-Mandaue Bridge, while the second division will follow with blue and yellow color markers, respectively.

Alquiza said the third division, composed of bigger seacraft weighing a maximum of 250 gross tons, will group at the Ouano wharf on the Mandaue City side with a green marker.

He pointed out that all unregistered vessels will be barred from joining the formation. They will instead be placed at the tail end of the procession.

As of yesterday, only 21 motorboats had registered at the Cebu CG office.

Registration

For his part, Cebu CG Chief Elson Hermogino advised boat owners to register their watercraft early and bring copies of their vessels’ documents, such as the Marina registration, the certificate of inspection and licenses of boat captain and crew.

The CG vowed to strictly impose the passenger capacity of participating boats and prevent participants from blasting firecrackers and drinking liquor while at sea.

As a tradition, the images of Sto. Niño and Our Lady of Guadalupe will be brought to the National Shrine of St. Joseph Parish in Mandaue City on Friday and stay there overnight.

Mv Trinidad, the designated “galleon” owned by the Ouano clan, will bring the two icons back to Cebu City via Pier 1.

The CG will deploy sea marshals, who will board patrol and rubber boats, to maintain order during the two-hour fluvial parade.

The Mactan Channel will be closed to all incoming and outgoing vessels from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. (GC)

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“I just came here to make sure nothing happens on that day. The reputation of the police and the local governments is at stake,” he told reporters after the meeting.

The Sinulog festival is expected to draw tourists to the province and after the tsunami hit major Asian destinations, the number of tourists is expected to increase.

Tourist windfall PNP Chief Edgardo Aglipay ordered Gador last Sunday to make sure tourists will feel safe, especially in Cebu, which he called the country’s top tourist destination. “We are expecting a lot of tourists this week and if anything happens, we might as well kiss those tourists goodbye,” he said. After hearing the plans made in coordination with the City Government, Gador said he would like to believe that they are ready for the Sinulog festival.

He has not received information of any group out to create havoc in Cebu, but said their preparations will hopefully prevent the entry of criminal elements.

No need for revamp

Meanwhile, Gador said he sees no reason to conduct a police revamp any time soon.

“I would like to work with the men and women in the PRO 7. In fact, I did not even bring too many people with me. Just my aide-de-camp and two non-commissioned officers,” he said.

After his visit to the CCPO, he also told the rest of the police offices in the region to expect a visit from him soon.

He added that he might even make surprise visits to the smaller police stations on the way.

“I hope they will not prepare just because I might pass by. They should be prepared anytime,” he said. (MEA)

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BUSINESS is where the crowd is, so traders from Luzon to Mindanao continue to flock in droves to Cebu City for the annual Sinulog celebration.

But this year, the traders were dismayed by the low sales, with others already thinking of putting off selling wares here for next year’s festivity.

They were one in appealing for the Cebu City Government to allow them to extend their stay up to end of February, and lower next year’s rental of the stalls lined along Osmeña Blvd.

“A lot of people come here but they don’t buy at all,” said Dante Naynes, 26, who came all the way from Luzon to sell Baguio City products like carved wood figures.

This is the fourth time he has been selling goods in Cebu City, and never has he felt a slump like this year’s. Badria Sultan from Zamboanga City, who has been selling batik cloth during the Sinulog for eight years now, feels the same way. “My husband doesn’t want (to sell) anymore because of the low returns. Around this time last year, we already earned so much,” she said.

Making the rent

She is renting two stalls at P30,000 each and is still hard pressed to earn a desirable profit margin since December.

Aside from hiring another person for P6,000 to help keep watch, she and husband Yusof also have to rent space in a boarding house because they could not sleep inside their stalls.

The City Government rented out the stalls in front of Abellana National School and City Central School for P25,000 to P30,000.

Those lining Osmeña Blvd. near the Development Bank of the Philippines building are being rented at P15,000 each.

Sultan added that they only earned half of what they used to during the previous years; they were even forced to reduce prices just to entice customers.

Annalyn Daclis, who sells ornamental and fruit-bearing plants from Tagum City, Davao del Norte, hopes the City will consider their plight and extend their stay up to the end of February.

That way, they would get a chance to earn more, especially during Valentine’s Day.

She attributed the lack of buyers to the financial crisis that made Cebuanos and tourists alike scrimp and forgo the luxuries.

“Wala pa gyud ko kabawi sa abang. Pero dili man ingon nga lugi na gyud (I still have to make enough for rent, but I don’t think of this is a losing proposition),” she said.

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PERFORMANCES have evolved to “a higher level” but there is a need for performers not to lose the basic movements of the Sinulog.

So says Dr. Larry Gabao, chairman of the board of judges in last Saturday’s Sinulog sa Kabataan sa Lalawigan, who is looking forward to choreography that emphasizes quality of movements.

“The presentations are now on a higher level and dwell not only on the development of a religious people,” he said shortly after last Saturday’s contest.

He cited the introduction of other themes and their fusion with the Sinulog message, as an example.

Gabao is president of the Philippine Folk Dance Society and presidential assistant for culture and the arts of the Philippine Normal University.

Bobbing

He said at least two workshops by the Sinulog Foundation for choreographers greatly helped in terms of conceptualization and execution of the right movements.

He cited in particular the predominance of the stomping and bobbing step that was never a part of the five to seven basic steps of the Sinulog.

“Those dancers from Mindanao, like the Tangub City contingent, introduced that to the Sinulog,” he said, adding that the steps have become a staple in most performances.

But after the workshops, he said those who will witness this Sunday’s grand parade will notice that such a step has been toned down.

Rethink props

Also, he said that the Sinulog is “not the fast beat” and criticized performances that feature fast foot movements to hurried drumbeats.

“Parang jet plane, masyadong mabilis. That is why I think it is important that we do not lose the Sinulog-based movements,” he added.

He likewise cautioned on the use of overwhelming props like the ones employed by Compostela National High School that were not really used as part of the choreography.

He said that props are supposed to aid in the flow of the concept, instead of just being embellishments.
Compostela copped first place for the third straight time in last Saturday’s Sinulog sa Kabataan sa Dakbayan.(RHM)

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FORTY-FIVE years of experience as a choreographer and 22 years of participating in the Sinulog taught Melchiades Gonzales Jr. to value simplicity and faith over extravagance.

Gonzales, 71, was one of the pioneer choreographers of the Sinulog in 1980, when dan-ces offered as thanksgiving were just simple movements of graceful dancers in decent costumes.

Twenty-five years later, he laments the loss of the Sinulog’s true meaning, citing misplaced priorities and too much commercialism during the feast of the Infant Jesus.

“There is destructive competition now. Everybody wants to win by being outrageous and spending millions, without minding those who suffer burns or get run over in the parade. They forget that their dance is supposed to be an offering, a sacrifice,” said Gonzales.

After helping Southwestern University (SWU) win nine grand prize awards and 11 wins as runner-up, Gonzales prefers to just be a devotee and a spectator this time.

He prays to the Sto. Niño to spare Cebu from calamities and tragedies, while seeking for the restoration of the faith and true meaning of the Sinulog that he and other pioneers so dearly hold.

The Sinulog organizers remember you as the one who started the basic Sinulog steps. How did it start?
I did not create the two steps forward, one step backward movement. No one created the steps. All choreographers cannot claim that they created it because they were steps danced by the old folks, the candle vendors at the basilica. Nobody can claim that as theirs because we just followed it.

Why then were the steps attributed to you?
It may have been so because as official choreographer of the first Sinulog, we brought it out so everybody thinks I was the one who started it.

When did you start to dance the Sinulog movements?
As soon as I learned to stand, I was already dancing. When the family sang prayers during the war, I would stomp my feet and dance to the tune even if there was total blackout.

How and when did your devotion to the Sto. Niño start?
It was before the war ended. I was nine years old. From Sibonga, we went to Leyte and while running away from the Japanese soldiers in the mountains there, we lost our youngest brother