BACOLOD City – The management of Metro Inn-Bacolod and the Bacolod City Police Office (BCPO) issued public apologies to the Bacoleños and local business establishments for the road closure along 6th Street, Barangay 7 on Nov. 20 that caused a massive traffic buildup.
The BCPO cordoned a portion of 6th Street – where Metro Inn is located – following a standoff in the said hotel on the evening of Nov. 19 and continued to the following day. The standoff was due to a feud between Francis Cabuga and wife Catherine.
The road was finally reopened past 5 p.m. on Nov. 20.
Bacoleños have taken to social media to complain about the inconvenience caused by the standoff – several business establishments were also affected, their customers having no entry way and access due to the temporary closure.
The Cabuga wife, in a press conference, apologized for the widespread traffic jam and inconvenience caused by the incident.
BCPO maintained they had to cordon the road for security reasons.
In a text message sent to Panay News, Senior Superintendent Francisco Ebreo, acting director of the BCPO, said they “deeply regret and apologize that there [were] businesses affected [by] the incident that transpired.”
The closure was a necessary consequence of the standoff – to avoid endangering the lives of motorists and pedestrians, he explained.
Ebreo added, “it is a part of [our] SOP [standard operating procedure] to ensure that the situation is contained/resolved [at the] soonest time possible.”
“We further assure the public that our action was geared [toward] the maintenance of peace and order and public safety,” Ebreo clarified.
Police Station 2 reported that the incident escalated around 9:42 p.m. of Nov. 19 when Francis, chief executive officer of Mushroom Realty and Development Corp. – together with several security guards – allegedly took over the hotel from the management of his wife Catherine.
According to Catherine, it was fine with her that her husband and companions entered the hotel to conduct an audit but she noticed that the main entrance and exit doors of the hotel were padlocked; this prompted her to call the police for assistance.
The BCPO, led by Ebreo, proceeded to the area to maintain peace and order.
The 43 hotel guests who had to check out of the hotel on Nov. 20 due to the incident have been refunded by the hotel, said the Cabuga wife.
The operation of Metro Inn-Bacolod is now is back to normal, she added.
Panay News learned that the said hotel – along with the other real estate properties of the spouses – is under litigation at the Regional Trial Court Branch 53./PN
