City to give aid to those affected by cemetery closure

CEBU, Philippines —  Due to the temporary closure of cemeteries in Cebu City during Undas, Mayor Edgardo Labella said the city government will provide assistance to those making a living in the public cemeteries.

"Kay niingon man sila nga tungod sa atong pagsira sa mga sementeryo sa petsa Nov. 1 ug 2, naapektahan gyud ang ilahang panginabuhi," said Labella.

In light of the COVID-19 outbreak, Labella earlier issued an executive order imposing a temporary closure of all public and private cemeteries, memorial parks, and columbaries within the city from October 30 to November 3, 2020.

Labella directed the Department of Social Welfare and Services (DSWS) to coordinate with the barangays wherein cemeteries are located to assess who are the affected vendors of flowers and candles, among others, so that they would be provided with rice and canned goods.

The mayor said this includes barangays Carreta, Calamba, Mabolo, Luz, and Pardo as these have big public cemeteries and hundreds of thousands of people would flock there during All Saints' Day and All Souls' Day.

Labella said there will be a continuous monitoring throughout this period.

"In fact, bisan gani og layo pa, tungod kay ato mang gitagaa'g kahigayonan ang katawhan nga makabisita na sa ilang sam-ang, duna nata'y ideploy nga mga police ug mga multiplier forces," he said.

This is to ensure that there will be no mass gathering to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

"Mao bitaw na nga gahangyo gyud ta sa katawhan... We are in the midst of this pandemic, the virus is still very much around. Mao nang ato lang una agwantahon," said Labella.

"Basin sa sunod tuig og we will be back to normal, na makausab nasad ta og pundok ngadto sa atong mga minahal nga nagtaliwan sa kinabuhi sa atong mga menteryo," he added. — KQD (FREEMAN)