By Dominic B. dela Cruz
Staff Reporter
AS THERE ARE no more room for
tombs at the Laoag City public cemetery, the city government is set to reassess
the earlier columbarium proposal.
A columbarium is sepulchral
vault with recesses on the wall which would hold ashes of the dead in urns.
The construction of
columbarium was earlier suggested by former Laoag councilor Francis Manolito
Dacuycuy to address the same lack of space for tombs at the public cemetery.
In a regular staff meeting at
the city hall, treasurer Ma. Elena Asuncion confirmed that there are no more
space available for the construction of tombs at the city cemetery. She added
that this is due to the high number of burials weekly.
She stated further that the
plan to purchase adjacent lots have yet to be finalized. Asuncion proposed that
to solve the immediate problems, the cemetery’s fence could be used to build
apartment-type of tombs.
City assessor Engr. Ruben
Domingo, who was primarily tasked to negotiate with the owners of the lots the
city government plans to acquire, said he has yet to talk to the owners personally.
The lot owners are reportedly residing outside the country and Domingo’s calls
have not been answered. The engineer said he has left several messages to the
owners but they have yet to reply.
Laoag mayor Chevylle V.
FariƱas has instructed assistant city engineer Fred Agpaoa to look for the best
solution for this problem. She emphasized that this should be given priority.
Agpaoa said they would
include this in the priority projects of the city government.
Meanwhile, Dacuycuy, now the
Laoag City General Hospital chief, said they need to revisit the earlier
approved resolution calling for the establishment of a city-owned columbarium.
Dacuycuy, who sponsored the
measure, believes that this is one of the best solutions to resolve this
problem.
The former councilor cited
Mandaluyong City as an example. Mandaluyong owns its own columbarium.
He explained further that
should this idea prosper, a crematorium would be needed and though this would
mean more expense, it would translate to more savings in the future. He added
that this is more practical and better health-wise.
Dacuycuy expounded that the
city government would need an initial investment of P14 million for the
acquisition of a lot and for the construction of the facilities. The most
expensive in this plan, he said, would be the crematorium.
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