2 weeks ago
6
CEBU CITY — National Museum of the Philippines (NMP) director general Jeremy Barns visited Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia to apologize for the delayed response to the province's inquiries about the historical pulpit panels stolen from the Archdiocesan Shrine of Patrocinio de Maria Santisima in Boljoon town.
Barns acknowledged the frustration over the decades-long absence of the religious artifacts and assured Garcia that the four intri-cately carved panels, which vanished in the 1980s, would be returned to their rightful place in March 2025.
His visit to the governor on Feb. 25 aimed to resolve the long-standing issue and reaffirm the NMP's com-mitment to repatriating cultural treasures.
"I really want to assure you, Ma'am, that I've been just as stressed and upset over this situation over the past year. I apologize for that," he said, according to a post at the Capitol's social media page Sugbo News.
The panels, which depict saints such as St. Augustine of Hippo and St. Thomas of Villanueva, were stolen from the Boljoon Church in the 1980s.
Get the latest news
delivered to your inbox
Sign up for The Manila Times newsletters
By signing up with an email address, I acknowledge that I have read and agree to the Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.
They changed hands multiple times before reaching the NMP in February 2024 as a donation by Edwin and Aileen Bautista.
