TALAVERA, Nueva Ecija – Julieta Alday, 67, and her sister had been planning to clean the tomb of their grandfather as early as last week but turned hesitant due to reports that a group of men bar townsfolk from entering the fenced portion of the cemetery until they agreed to pay P5,000 per square meter of lot at the Libingan ng Bayan (public cemetery) here.
“Saan kami kukuha ng ganung pera?” said Alday who has never failed to visit her grandfather’s tomb since her younger days. “Ngayon lang nangyari na may naniningil diyan.” For lack of money, Alday feared she could not visit her departed loved one for the rest of her life.
Alday was one of kin of some 1,500 dead buried inside a 13,822 parcel of land which served as part of the public cemetery since 1960 who had a sigh of relief on Saturday after the Regional Trial Court Branch 37, based in Sto. Domingo town, implemented a 17- day temporary restraining order which directed siblings Rommel and Mario Tumibay, Fausto Pascual and Eduardo Francisco, among others to “desist from entering the subject parcel of land for the purposes of constructing fences around it which would prevent the public ingress and egress on it.”
The order signed by Judge Nelson Tribiana was issued based on a petition filed by the municipal government of Talavera represented by Mayor Nerivi Santos-Martinez. It also directed the defendants to “desist from threatening to disturb the peaceful possession of the plaintiff in the said parcel of land.”
The Tumibays were grandchildren of certain couple Maximo and Julia Tumibay who, according to the plaintiff, sold the land to the municipal government sometime in 1960s. It was used as a public cemetery since.
Sometime in 2012, Maximo’s son, Felomino Tumibay demanded a payment of P41,466,000 from the municipal government claiming he owns the said property. On Aug. 21, 2019, Pascual and Francisco, upon instruction of the younger Tumibays, allegedly dismantled all the improvements put up by the municipal government and fenced the area with concrete posts and barbed wire.
“Defendants also vandalized the stage/ shaded area by painting the words ‘private property, no trespassing’ on wall of the stage,” the petitioning government unit said.
The Court said it was convinced the urgent need to preserve the status quo “especially so, that it is being presently used as a public cemetery where the beloved departed of the residents of the municipality were buried.”
“To prevent serious consequences that may arise if the bereaved families of the departed will be prevented from entering the cemetery, not to mention the serious and irreparable damage it may cause to the Municipality of Talavera, being the one who maintains/ manages the cemetery, the issuance of a TRO is in order,” said Tribiana’s Oct. 24, 2019 order.
Martinez who joined the court sheriff in implementing the order on Saturday said they are also pushing for a permanent injunction as she maintained the regularity of the town’s acquisition of the land about 60 years ago.
“Pati ang mga dokumento kung paanong sinasabi na nalipat sa kanila ang titulo ay questionable,” Martinez said. For now, she stressed, it was enough that the residents can freely visit their departed loved ones on All Saints’ and All Souls’ Day.
Martinez immediately deployed town equipment and employees to clear the path ways.
Police Col. Alexie Desamito, town police chief, said the implementation of the court order has been peaceful.
Earlier, Rommel Tumibay insisted their right to sell the property. He said they set no deadline for residents to pay.
