The pre-war years of 1940 and 1941 in Cebu were years of continued peace and calm in Cebu where businesses were conducted by big or small entrepreneurs.  Noticeable then were the proliferation of many small Japanese-owned bazaars in downtown Cebu, who later on turned out to be spying for their Motherland.  

The Chamber Presidency of Agustin Jereza in those years saw Cebu’s economy affected by the insecurities of the business sector because of an impending war. Jereza was an engineer by profession who had built many of Cebu City’s landmarks including Vision theater and the (now) UP administration building. He added his voice to the call by government authorities for the entire community to keep calm and continue living their lives peacefully and calmly.