45 towns, cities to get P500,000 each in subsidy

FOR PASIGARBO SA SUGBO

The 45 towns and component cities participating in the Pasigarbo sa Sugbo will be receiving P500,000 in financial assistance from the Cebu provincial government.

Dubbed as the festival of festivals, Pasigarbo sa Sugbo will be back on stage on August 25 at the Cebu City Sports Center after a six-year halt.

Governor Gwendolyn Garcia said the provincial government has appropriated funds in the proposed first supplemental budget (SB) for the 45 contingents. The SB is yet to be approved by the members of the Provincial Board.

She said the far-flung towns like San Francisco, Poro, Bantayan, Madridejos and Santa Fe, all in northern Cebu, will get an additional fund of P200,000 to augment their travel expenses.

“Ang ila gyud ana kay honor nga sila mao’y labing una after na resurrect,” she said.

The Pasigarbo sa Sugbo was last held in 2012 wherein Liloan’s Rosquillos Festival was hailed as the grand champion of the ritual dance competition.

The governor is yet to reveal the amount of cash prizes. She, however, hinted that the cash prize would not be lower than a million.

With the expenses, Garcia said there is nothing to worry about because the province has enough savings.

“Don’t worry kun inyo nang kwentahon (financial aid for contingents), dako pa gihapon ta og sobra sa savings nato daan sa mga JO (job-order personnel). Mao na akong giingon ba, redirecting resources,” she said.

By letting go of some temporary hospital workers and hiring JO personnel, the Capitol is expecting to save around P31 million a month, or more than P360 million in a year.

During her first week in office, Garcia terminated 2,992 JO and contract-of-service (COS) employees. The governor plans to tap a service provider to outsource Capitol manpower. —