Mourners fill buses for Vidal’s burial

All the buses intended to ferry those who would be joining the procession and burial of the late Cebu Archbishop Emeritus Ricardo Cardinal Vidal yesterday were all utilized.

"Yes, nagamit gyud ang 12 ka buses. Daghan gyud kaayo ang mga tawo nitambong sa lubong ni Cardinal Vidal," said Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board-7 Regional Director Ahmed Cuizon.

Aside from the free ride for the 12 buses, the local government units of Cebu, Mandaue and Lapu-Lapu have also provided their respective buses and some government vehicles to ferry mourners to the Cathedral.

Cuizon has issued special permits for the 12 buses to carry passengers closer to the venue of the funeral procession.

Police estimated crowd witnessing and joining Vidal's funeral procession at 55,000.

Meanwhile, around 50 barangay environmental officers (BEO) were deployed at the Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral during the interment of Ricardo Cardinal Vidal to reprimand individuals who throw their trash everywhere.

The Cebu City Environment and Natural Resources Office had deputized BEOs to issue citation tickets to the person who is disposing their trash improperly.

Councilor Eugenio Gabuya Jr., City Council chairman on public services, told The FREEMAN that the city government decided to post deputized personnel around the Cathedral in order to maintain the cleanliness in the area.

“Ang BEOs ang motanaw ug mobadlong sa mga tawo nga dili magpataka og labay sa ilang basura at the same time motabang pag marshall aron hapsay ang procession,” he said.

BEOs will issue citation tickets to the violators with the corresponding fine from P500 to P1,500.

Gabuya said that the BEOs did not issue even a single citation ticket to the violators.

“Wala raman, labi na dako ni nga event, mohatag tag consideration, badlong lang gyud ta,” he said.

Department of Public Services Assistant Head John Paul Gelasque divulged that about 30 tons of trash was collected at the Cathedral.

The cleaning operation ended around 2 p.m.

After Vidal's interment, more than a hundred of street cleaners were mobilized to clean the area.