IN THE heart of our city, Malabon, our parish priest Fr. Ric Torrefiel built a crematorium in the San Bartolome churchyard. Ours is a residential/commercial area. It is quite densely populated. There are schools, fast food outlets, bakeries, banks, the city hall, and the public market. The residents signed a letter expressing our opposition to the project way back in October last year. Copies of the letter were sent to the mayor, vice mayor, councilors and city engineers.
I think this priest is a miracle worker! He got all the necessary permits—barangay clearance, mayor’s permit, building permit, and best of all an Environmental Compliance Certificate from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources. It will be opening soon—on April 7 to be exact (his birthday). The day of the priest’s birth is the day we begin to die of the toxins coming from this deadly crematorium. This takes place in spite of our clear expression of our opposition. I would like to believe that the man of the cloth and the men in public office are there to serve the interests of the people they swore to protect, but obviously I am wrong.
I would like to appeal to people out there who would care to protect us.
—DR. GAUDELIA P. JAVIER,
bot.javier@gmail.com