Here is how the venue for the Sinulog sa Carmen in Carmen town looks like as of Thursday, Jan. 19. | Contributed photo
LAPU-LAPU CITY, Philippines — Spectators for the upcoming 50th Sinulog sa Carmen on Sunday, Jan. 22, 2023, can witness the event for free.
This was confirmed by Carmen Mayor Carlo Villamor in an interview over DYHP-RMN Cebu on Thursday, Jan. 19, 2023.
According to Villamor, they are expecting the number of spectators to double or event triple this year.
“Among nasabutan nga tungod kay 50th anniversary ato i-libre so walay bayad ang pagtan-aw,” Villamor said.
(We agreed that because this is the 50th anniversary so we will let the spectators watch it for free.)
To prevent overcrowding at their sports center, Villamor said that they would be installing light-emitting diode (LED) walls in the public market and in front of the municipal hall so that viewers would no longer need to watch the ritual dance showdown in person.
“Ang atong grandstand sa una which is mao sad atong gigamit karon puno-puno gyud ni panahon sa Sinulog. Pun-an sa additional bisita maong naay dagkong LED walls nga ipamutang para ang mga tawo madisperse,” said Villamor in the interview.
The street dancing will start at 1:00 p.m. that will be followed by a ritual dance showdown of the contingents from the Province of Cebu and Cebu City.
Villamor said that they would be expecting the event to end at around 10:00 p.m. However, this can be extended if there are adjustments that need to be done.
Earlier, Villamor announced the implementation of a truck ban until Jan. 23, while classes will also be suspended during that day.
The town will also hire judges from outside Cebu, to ensure that there will be no biases during the judging of winners.
He said that the competition will be divided into three categories, namely: local contingents, Sinulog-based, and Free Interpretation category.
Due to this, Villamor is urging Cebuanos to also pray for good weather to ensure the success of the event.
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