Rama disallows Halloween festival on the road

CEBU, Philippines - Mayor Michael Rama will not allow the holding of a Kalag-Kalag Festival in Barangay Calamba starting tonight if the activity would be held along V. Rama Avenue because it will hamper the smooth flow of traffic.

The mayor personally called up City Traffic Operations Management (CITOM) Executive Officer Rafael Christopher Yap to verify the report that the Kalag-Kalag festival shall be performed on the road like the Sinulog grand parade.

Yap said he does not remember the officials of Barangay Calamba applying for a special permit to use portions of V. Rama Avenue about their sponsored activity. The usual procedure when portions of road will be used for a particular activity is that the organizer will first ask an endorsement from the traffic authorities.

If the CITOM officials will not oppose to the holding of the activity along the road they will endorse its approval to the City Council that has the power to authorize that portions of roads can be used for other purposes for a specific period.

Rama said he will not allow that the road within the vicinity of the Calamba public cemetery will be used for any activity during the Halloween season because he is sure that it will cause traffic congestion even in other areas.

According to Yap, he will strictly implement the mayor’s order by not allowing anybody to hold their activities within the road.

The mayor said he will not object to the holding of the Kalag-Kalag festival if the officials of Barangay Calamba will conduct the activity at their barangay hall. He even ordered Yap to strictly implement a “no parking” of vehicles along the roadsides near the cemetery.

The Bando Osmeña Pundok-Kauswagan (BOPK) supported the activity of holding the Kalag-Kalag festival, but details of the festival were not immediately known.

The Freeman tried to contact Calamba Barangay Captain Victor Quijano but nobody answered his mobile phone. — (FREEMAN)