Guv gives P100k aid to Panglao's Sinulog bid

GOV. Erico Aumentado Thursday handed over a P100,000 check to Panglao Mayor Doloreich Dumaluan as grant to assist the town's contingent in its Sinulog quest. The contingent is vying for top awards today in the free interpretation category. It hopes to surpass its performance last year that won it fourth place and the P250,000 prize that came with it. “I congratulate Mayor Dumaluan and Senior Kagawad Nila Montero for their sustained support to the Panglao contingent so that Bohol has a participation in the Sinulog,” Aumentado told the crowd that gathered at the Municipal Plaza beside the Saint Augustine Church in Poblacion to see the dress rehearsal.

Montero had personally delivered Dumaluan's letter-request seeking Aumentado's support for the contingent and inviting him to the performance. “I came here to redeem my promise of support, and to wish you luck. I also make another promise – the corresponding financial support again in next year's Sinulog,” he said. Participation in the Cebu festival in honor of the Santo Niño is as good as any campaign to further expose Bohol 's wonders and tourism come-ons and, in the process, boost the industry Panglao is known for, he explained.

The Sinulog signature is the Santo Niño. In the performance, it may be an icon carried by a dancer, or a child dressed as such. Panglao's interpretation has its own Bb. Pilipinas-World Anna Maris Igpit who participated in last year's Ms. World pageant in Poland carrying the icon as she dances in front of the contingent. The contingent comprised of 100 dancers and 30 instrumentalists portray the ethnic group Higaunon in their motley costumes and headdresses decorated with beads and feathers called panika. Aside from the panika, the dancers also carry equally colorful orbs strung on a stick, similarly decorated round winnows, huge silvery leaves and gigantic fans. Cebu-based Anthony Ceniza choreographs the performance.

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