AROUND 100 residents of Barangay Kalunasan, Cebu City held a protest rally on Thursday, July 21, 2022, to demand officials of the Old Philippine Railway Residents Association (Oppra) Inc. to remove the “toll gate” that they installed in front of their road right of way.Residents of the barangay led by engineer Antonio Canoy claimed that the “toll gate” placed in front of the road was aimed by Oppra members to collect fees from them and prevent their vehicles from entering and exiting their area.Canoy claimed that he and his fellow residents felt like “prisoners in their own homes” over what the association allegedly has done to them.“Ako lang giawhag nga atong tagaan sa ilang gipangayo nga libreng agianan kay matod pa nila di sila kaagi kay kagahapon lang gialihan sa mga tawo ug dili na gyud maagian,” Canoy added.(All I ask is that they give us what they are asking, which is to freely pass by the road because they said they cannot pass. Just yesterday, they blocked the road and no one can pass. )During their protest, Canoy and his fellow disgruntled residents even forcibly removed the padlock placed on the “toll gate” but it was later replaced with a makeshift lock.Plaza developmentIn a separate interview, Oppra Inc. chairman Roy Pintor said they particularly asked for payments for those using the road as they wanted to develop the old plaza situated near the area.“Ang mga miyembro sa Oppra Inc. nangita na sa ilang plaza nga gitukod niadtong 1972 pa. Wala pa na sila dihang tanan naa nay plaza. Tungod lage di man dato ang asosasyon maong gipasagdan lang na,” Pintor added.(Oppra Inc. members are now looking for the plaza that was constructed back in 1972. They (disgruntled residents) were not even here when the plaza was established. But because the association was not well-off, so the plaza was eventually abandoned) Pintor also claimed that Canoy was hiring “fake protestors” during their rally, an accusation which was denied by the engineer. (PAC / JKV)