Six houses, some within mausoleums for the dead, at the Bacolod Public Cemetery at Burgos Street in Bacolod City were demolished by the City Legal Office (CLO) enforcement team on Tuesday, October 24.
The houses, some of which were suspected to be occupied by drug users, were illegally tapping electricity from street lights, Rey Demisana, CLO enforcement team head, said.
Some turned old mausoleums into houses and one even had a second floor, Demisana said.
They also had electric fans, televisions, a washing machine, rice cookers, and mattresses, he said.
Demisana said the owners of mausoleums have complained that they were afraid to visit their dead because of the presence of the informal settlers.
Two of the makeshift houses had a lot of aluminum foil on the ground, which is indicative that they could have been used as drug dens, he said.
There were also makeshift ladders for possible escape routes to the adjacent Catholic cemetery, he said.
Demisana said his team and the police would also conduct a night inspection of the cemetery to see if there were more people residing there.
Among the recommendations of their team is the cleaning up of the cemetery that no longer has pathways in some areas, and for a closer watch to prevent the cemetery from being occupied by informal settlers, Demisana said.
Vendors will also not be allowed within the cemetery, he said.
Burying of the dead is no longer allowed at the overcrowded cemetery.
City Legal Officer Romeo Carlos Ting Jr. said illegal settlers at the cemetery were sent demand letters to vacate the area before the demolition took place.*