Probe head Raquel Arce told SunStar Cebu on Tuesday, Oct. 18, 2022, that their personnel recovered a 9mm bullet wrapped in plastic together with a one peso coin left in the area on Monday, Oct. 17.
Arce said they immediately requested the Cebu City Police Office (CCPO) to investigate the threat, which she believed to have come from the dwellers in the area.
“I’m not accusing anybody, but because of our presence in the area while serving the notices (to vacate), we can say that the threat specifically came from those affected by the clearing (operation),” Arce said in Cebuano.
The demolition of structures in the area was supposed to start in 2016 to convert the cemetery into a heritage park; however, it did not push through following the defeat of Mayor Michael Rama in the May 2016 elections to Tomas Osmeña.
The cemetery houses the Osmeña Mausoleum, the final resting place of the late senator Sergio Osmeña Jr., father of Tomas, and the late first lady Estefania “Doña Pepang” Veloso Osmeña, wife of the late president Sergio Osmeña Sr.
Arce said they will demolish around 30 structures inside the area and portions of establishments outside the cemetery that have encroached on the sidewalks.
Despite the threat, Arce said the demolition will push through on Monday, Oct. 24, and as part of the protocol, the Probe team will coordinate with the CCPO for security.
“We will push through (with the demolition). Because if we won’t push through with it, then my personnel and I will lose our jobs,” Arce said.