Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia said the province will hire Edward Hayco to train the dancing inmates. Hayco and his wife Eleanor founded the Dancesport Team Cebu City which has won numerous awards in national and international competitions.
“Although dancesport is more like ballroom dancing but we will see because there are still inmates who are still familiar with their dance programs and their previous presentations. Hopefully, this year we can bring them back if they are ready,” Garcia said.
She said she also plans to revive the old program of providing the inmates their own bank savings account.
CPDRC inmates in Garcia’s previous terms had their own bank savings account which was meant to help them start a new life once they are released from detention.
“We will revive their savings account. They will have their savings accounts with the Cooperative Bank of Cebu,” Garcia said.
The inmates’ savings will come from the community store that will be put up inside the facility.
The CPDRC dancing inmates became popular in 2007 when their performance was included in the “Popular Viral Videos” that showed them performing to Michael Jackson’s “Thriller.” The dancing inmates also became the subject of documentaries as well as local and international films.
The dancing inmates stopped performing in 2010 amid investigations that the Capitol initiated involving donations and contributions that the group had received.