Tuesday, August 21, 2007 New homes for statues of city’s famous sons
MANDAUE City Mayor Jonas Cortes will place statues of distinguished Mandauehanons in prominent areas and create a committee to decide who will receive the honors in the future.
Cortes said the statue of former governor Sotero Barte Cabahug will be placed in the garden beside the City Hall, while a bust of former mayor Alejandro Seno Fortuna will be placed at the Heritage Park in front of the Cebu International Convention center.
“This is for the young generation to emulate the good deeds these people had done for the city,” Cortes told Sun.Star Cebu.
The move is not to appease the growing tension between Cortes’ office and the City Council, whose relationship strained when Cortes demolished the park built by the previous administration.
Pride of Mandaue
Cabahug and Fortuna were two distinguished figures and are both grandfathers of council presiding officer and Vice Mayor Carlo Fortuna, who leads the councilors opposed to Cortes.
“Everybody knows garbo nato sila (Cabahug and Fortuna are our pride),” the Cortes said.
Former councilor Ponti-co “Tex” Fortuna said Sotero Cabahug served almost all branches of the government during his time. Pontico is the father of the vice mayor.
A governor, secretary of public works and defense secretary before he became justice of the Court of Appeals, Caba-hug made Mandaueha-nons proud of his accomplishments, said Fortuna.
Cabahug is Carlo’s grandfather, being the uncle of Carlo’s mother Cirilita.
Alejandro Seno Fortu-na, where the street A.S. Fortuna got its name, is also Carlo’s grandfather, being the father of Pontico.
Grateful
He was the elected mayor during the Japanese occupation. The former mayor is remembered for his willingness to give his life to his fellow Man-dauehanons during the war by turning down numerous offers to escape together with his family.
On March 25, 1945, the Japanese executed Alejandro, his wife Encarnacion and their daughter Editha.
“In behalf of the Fortuna family, I am grateful to Mayor Cortes for honoring my family,” the former councilor said.
The already strained relationship between Cortes and the council majority who are allies of former mayor Thadeo Ouano again came into light when the mayor demolished the park built by his predecessor.
Cortes said former mayor Ouano converted the crossroads leading to the church and City Hall into a park without passing an ordinance and transferred Cabahug’s statue to the hidden end of the park.
“I am just restoring them to a place where they greatly deserve,” the mayor told Sun.Star.
He added that bringing back the roads in front of the church and City Hall is for public safety and welfare. He said widening and opening new roads will decongest traffic in front of the church which is full of worshippers after a Sunday mass.
The vice mayor, who is close to former mayor Ouano, is yet to have an investigation on the matter. (OCP)
