Gabii sa Kabilin or Night of Heritage is an annual event hosted by the Ramon Aboitiz Foundation Inc. (Rafi) to help encourage heritage and history appreciation.
The particular roads affected will include Isagani Street corner Sikatuna, Colon corner Mabini, and Jakosalem Street corner Colon Street.
Vehicles will not be able to pass through these intersections from 1 p.m. until midnight on May 12.
Motorists who frequent these roads are encouraged to find an alternative route and to avoid the areas where the participants will flock.
Rerouting
Due to the road closures, jeepneys traversing the affected streets will be rerouted.
Jeepneys coming from South passing through Colon will need to turn right to Jakosalem from Colon Street, then turn left to Gomez Street and to Urdaneta Street.
Jeepneys coming from North passing through Bonifacio Street, Sikatuna will need to do a right turn to Zamora, then a right turn to Jakosalem and a left turn to Sanciangko Street.
The rerouting will also start from 1 p.m. until midnight, when the heritage night is expected to end.
The closures and rerouting are set to ensure the safety of participants in the Gabii sa Kabilin and to manage traffic flow as thousands of Cebuanos are expected to participate in the one-night event.
In 2022, at least 4,000 individuals joined the Gabii sa Kabilin to visit 20 museums in the cities of Cebu, Mandaue and Talisay.
Despite the hassle that motorists will face, Cebu City Councilor Jocelyn Pesquera, chairperson for the Tourism Commission, said it is worth the one night of slight discomfort.
“It has a very good impact, especially on the students. I have observed the growing interest from our youth regarding our heritage,” she said. (Deborah Arcilla, BiPSU Intern, JJL)