President Rodrigo Duterte said that he would sign an executive order to declare October 26 as a holiday in Cebu in honor of Cebu Archbishop Emeritus Ricardo Cardinal Vidal’s burial on that day.

President Duterte visited Cardinal Vidal’s wake unannounced at the Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral close to midnight on October 22. He went straight to Cebu City from Bacolod City, where he attended the MassKara Festival, spending around 20 minutes at the cardinal’s wake with Archbishop Jose Palma and the late cardinal’s younger brother, Juanito. The President left the wake at around 12:30 am on October 23.

Presidential Assistant to the Visayas Michael Dino sought Duterte’s approval of a holiday declaration to allow Cebuanos to pay their last respects to Vidal.

In a statement, Dino said, “Indeed a pivotal shepherd for 29 years in our Archdiocese, the declaration of a holiday on the occasion of his interment will enable our people to pay their last respects to the beloved Cardinal.”

Vidal, who passed away on October 18 due to septic shock, will be buried at the mausoleum of Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral on October 26, beside the tomb of his predecessor, Cardinal Julio Rosales.

Vidal, who hailed from Mogpog, Marinduque, served as Cebu’s Archbishop for 29 years, after he was appointed by Pope John Paul II as Coadjutor Archbishop of Cebu in 1981.