About 50 people, including Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama, joined nuns of the Asilo dela Milagrosa in a candle-lit prayer walk at dawn yesterday, the start of a different dimension of the campaign to stop the rise of a flyover on Gorordo Avenue, Cebu City.
The group recited the rosary as four men carried the image of the Lady of the Miraculous Medal on their shoulders.
A nun announced before the “aurora” or dawn procession that the prayers were being offered for the “enlightenment” of the community about what to do about the pending construction of a flyover, which parishioners fear will destroy the “solemnity” and “heritage value” of the church, which is over 50 years old.
Meanwhile, the petition of the Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul has been raised to Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma.
The prelate hasn’t given his position yet, and said he would reflect on the matter before speaking.
Two sources told Cebu Daily News representatives of the religious congregation were able to meet the archbishop to convey their concern. He asked for time to make a proper “discernment.”
Yesterday’s dawn procession opened the month of October, which is traditionally celebrated as the Month of the Rosary among Catholics.
It started at the Asilo dela Milagrosa about 4 a.m. and proceeded to the road section in front of Family Choice Restaurant, where one end of the proposed flyover will be built.
In solemn unity, the group walked down Gorordo Avenue up to the Colegio dela Inmaculada, then turned around to headed back to the church as they prayed the rosary.
Among those who joined the prayer walk, which lasted almost an hour, were residents of Gorordo Avenue and supporters of the Stop Cebu Flyover Movement led by West Gorordo hotel owner Joel Lee, Louella and Rudy Alix, and Architect Joy Onozawa.
Mayor Rama later said he is hoping that “there should always be listening and a softening of hearts.”
“We have faith. We’ll leave it up to God. ‘Thy will be done.’ … It may not be, it may be, but there will always be reason for everything,” Rama said.
The dawn procession will be held for nine consecutive Saturdays.
Mayor Rama is seeking the intervention of President Aquino to suspend the P300-million project of the Dept. of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), which is set to start construction in November.
Rama who heads the Banilad-Talamban Taskforce, along with the Cebu City Traffic Operations Management, has objected to the rise of two flyovers as “extremely inefficient” in addressing traffic congestion. They are pressing instead for road widening, flared intersections and an updated Traffic Master Plan to guide developments in Metro Cebu.
Rama is also upset that the “heritage value” of Asilo dela Milagrosa, landmark in Cebu City, would be compromised by the project.
“I’ve been very clear about my stand ever since. If it does not work there (Banilad-Talamban flyover), obviously its not going to work here. It’s the same problem. The road is not wide enough and the flyover being made does not jive,” he said.
On the other hand, Rep. Rachel Marguerite “Cutie” del Mar, backed by the Cebu City Council and most barangays in the north district, are pushing fo the additional flyovers saying P600 million was available and funds should be used for the purpose.
She and her father, Raul, the former congressmen, had worked two years to secure the DPWH budget for the project. While they are not the complete solution to traffic congestion, she said they provide much-needed relief for motorists in busy intersections of M.J. Cuenco and Gorordo Avenue.
Last Thursday, Del Mar said she was concerned after reading in CDN that a 3.7-meter setback marked by DPWH on the wall of the Asilo dela Milagrosa would mean having to destroy part of a garden-grotto, parking lot, guardhouses and crisis intervention center as well as push the boundary wall up to the main door of the church.
She said she immediately discussed the matter with DPWH Cebu City District engineer Nicomedes Leonor Jr. “to do everything possible to make sure that nothing in Asilo Chruch and other buildings including their fence” will be affected by the flyover construction.
DPWH-7 legal counsel Ausutinito Hermoso earlier said work on the Gorordo flyover is set to being in November. The project was already awarded to WTG Construction.
Another flyover is set to rise in MJ Cuenco Avenue near the Carreta cemetery.
The faculty of the College of Architecture and Fine Arts of the University of San Carlos and Graduate School of Urban Planning issued a position paper last week saying flyovers “don’t belong in the urban core” of Cebu City and instead should be built in the periphery.
They underscored the need for proper “physical planning” or else the city would suffer from further “urban decay”.
Louella Alix, a member of the Cebu Archdiocesan Commission on Church Heritage, said she hopes the public will see that a flyover “is just a band aid solution.”
“A flyover in Gorordo is unthinkable,” said Alix, who lives in Gorordo Avenue.
“We are brought up to believe in prayer. It’s an act of faith. We believe something will come out,” Alix said.
Another supporter, although he didn’t join the procession, is Big Brother celebrity housemate Budoy Maraviles, who was seen at the church.
He composed a song “Stop Flyover” with a reggae beat, which is being played on some local radio stations.
“Naay daghang solution pag-solve sa traffic. Dili ko uyon anang flyovers. Sayang lang ang kuwarta (There are many ways to solve traffic congestion. I oppose the construction of flyovers. It’s just a waste of public funds),” Maraviles told Cebu Daily News.
“Ang mga politiko naa man gyuy motive. Syempre, unahon ang ilang interest—dili ang sa katawhan. Awhag lang nako nila nga unahon unta ang unsay maka-benefit sa siyudad (Politicians always have motive in everything they do. Of course, they prioritize their own interest, not the common good of people. I urge politicians to prioritize what will be beneficial for the city),” he said.