SIMILAR to last year, a Mass at the St. Augustine Metropolitan Cathedral along with a blessing and wreath laying ceremony will be held by City Hall to mark the 11th anniversary of the Sendong tragedy in Cagayan de Oro City on Friday.

“We’ve invited Mayor (Rolando) Klarex (Uy) to attend or send his representative to the activities that will be attended by 78 officials (presidents and vice presidents) of the Sendong homeowners associations of various relocation sites,” said Lourdes Lumagsao, housing, and home-site regulation officer of the City Housing Urban Development Department.

Lumagsao said the 9 am special Mass will also be attended by City Hall department heads and elected officials and will be followed by the blessing and wreath laying at the Sendong Memorial Wall at Gaston Park.

ALWAYS REMEMBERED. A blessing and wreath laying ceremony will be held at the Sendong Memorial Wall at Gaston Park in remembrance of the Sendong victims on Friday, 11 years after the tragedy. CIO Photo by Jomar Figuracion

The marble wall built a year after the tragedy was initiated by civic groups and contained the names of over 1,000 persons who perished in the floodings caused by the tropical storm Sendong (international name Washi).

A Sendong memorial wall also stands in Iligan City in remembrance of its residents who died in the tragedy. Since the tragedy, City Hall provided 39 relocation sites in the city, Lumagsao said.

After his election in 2013, former mayor Oscar Moreno created the Chudd which was mandated to provide housing for Sendong victims and for families living near the city’s creeks and rivers.

Upon his election last May, Cagayan de Oro City Mayor Rolando ‘Klarex’ Uy pledged to sustain and even expand City Hall’s socialized housing program started by his predecessor.

On Dec. 6, Mayor Uy congratulated 53 beneficiaries consisting of families affected by City Hall’s Hapsay Sapa project who received entry passes to their respective houses in barangay Mambuaya.

Last year, Lumagsao said Chudd provided titles to each of the 378 recipients, or about 75 percent of the beneficiaries at a relocation site in Barangay Balubal.

“Gawad Kalinga in partnership with San Miguel Corp. built the houses while City Hall provided the lots. We also provided livelihood projects like silkworm rearing and capability pieces of training to all Sendong homeowners associations,” Lumagsao said. (Stephen Capillas with a report from Annabelle Ricalde of the City Information Office)