Santa Fe Mayor Jose Esgana said “the spirit of reconciliation is moving” insofar as his talks with Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma involving the municipal government’s plans to stage an Isla Music Festival on Black Saturday are concerned.
Esgana met with Palma yesterday afternoon and he reiterated that there is no quarrel between the church and the Santa Fe municipal government.
“It’s only purely on the people involved,” he said.
Esgana said the issue raised against the Isla Music Festival had gotten out of hand and that he is open to a reconciliation a few days before the event.
“The spirit of reconciliation is moving so palabyon sa nato ning Holy Week, iwasan muna ang mga intriga (let this Holy Week pass, let’s avoid the intrigues),” Esgana said.
Esgana said he is reaching out to the church since he believes the issue might have been politically motivated.
“Ang church ug kami, mag-extra careful lang mi kay basin mapolitika (The Church and I, we have to be careful lest this becomes politicized),” the mayor said.
Palma said he is glad that Esgana had personally sought out a meeting with him and urged him to have a dialogue with Fr. Roy Bucag, Santa Fe parish priest.
Palma said Esgana assured him that there would be no entertainment activities on Holy Thursday and Good Friday that would disrupt the church’s schedule for Holy Week.
To settle the issue, Palma said he would ask Cebu Auxiliary Bishop Dennis Villarojo to facilitate a dialogue between Bucag and Esgana to pave way for their reconciliation.
Palma said Esgana denied that he would be filing a case against Bucag.
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