New columbarium with 12,000 niches opens in Pasig City

A new columbarium with 12,000 available niches was recently inaugurated in the Pasig City Cemetery ahead of All Saints’ and All Souls’ Days or Undas on Nov. 1 and 2.

Pasig City Mayor Vico Sotto, Vice Mayor Robert “Dodot” Jaworski Jr., Rep. Roman Romulo, city councilors and other government officials graced the ceremony on Friday, Oct. 27.

Sotto said the columbarium was made to address the dwindling number of available spaces in the city’s four cemeteries namely the Pasig City Cemetery, Pasig Catholic Cemetery, Evergreen Chapels & Crematory, and Dela Paz Funeral Homes.

He stressed the need for the local government to keep planning ways to maximize the spaces left in the city to accommodate the high demand of proper resting places for deceased Pasigueños.

However, he said that they will be sensitive in their process to avoid displacing already entombed individuals and families.

The mayor said that the building began construction during his first term in 2019, and was continuously developed following procurement of niches and other equipment, as well as waterproofing and improvement of the structure’s drainage system.

Aside from the large accommodation of niches, the columbarium features an elevator and fixed ramps of the chapel.

An actual office space has also been made for the Pasig Cemetery Office, who have long been settling in a mere container van.

Sotto said the project was a good reminder to the city’s Engineering Department and the local government to create holistic and proper planning, especially for infrastructure projects, with a complete program of work from start to finish.

Regarding the city’s preparations for Undas, the mayor added that the Incident Management Team (IMT) is ready for the influx of crowds for both the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) and Undas.