Gov’t vows to thwart threats vs Pope Francis

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine government is working thoroughly to rule out any and all kinds of threats against Pope Francis, who is set to arrive tomorrow for a five-day visit to Manila and typhoon-devastated Tacloban City in Leyte.

President Aquino told reporters in a briefing Monday local authorities are coordinating with the International Criminal Police Organization for any information about terrorists who might want to create trouble.

“We are maximizing all of these efforts and we’re touching base with so many allies to try and see, and identify any threat whatsoever coming from any direction,” Aquino said, referring to Interpol and law enforcement agencies from fellow Southeast Asian nations.

Aquino disclosed local authorities have already been gathering and sharing information “through the various mechanisms and organizations that we belong to,” including Interpol.

“For instance, the Interpol. Do they have a watchlist of people who went to Syria or to Iraq to join IS…not just our citizens,” Aquino said.

“Then we also have our ASEAN brother-states that have some of their citizens suspected of wanting to join IS. Plus we have our own ongoing operations to deal with our own domestic terrorist threats.”

Aquino clarified, however, that there is “no direct threat” against the popular pontiff. He said the pope would have “double the security” currently provided to him by the elite Presidential Security Group.

Top security Cabinet members were deployed to check all ports and airports in southern Philippines to ensure papal security.

Communication and Transportation Secretary Emilio Jun Abaya, Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin, Armed Forces chief Gen. Gregorio Pio Catapang Jr. and a representative of the Department of the Interior and Local Government arrived Monday night to ensure all the security preparation were well in place.

Abaya said their assessment visit was to ensure the security procedures and determine if there are threats and terror plots to strengthen the security preparation.

Abaya, however, said there has been no likelihood of security threat that will catch the attention of the pontiff.

Lt. Gen. Rustico Guerrero, Western Mindanao Command (Wesmincom) chief who joined the Cabinet security team, said they have been increasing the security preparation up to the last minute of the papal visit until his departure from the country.

The security team visited the Zamboanga City airport and the seaport before heading back to Cebu and will be roaming around the areas of Mindanao to ensure no security incident will divert the attention of the pope.

Airport authorities issued a notice to airmen (NOTAM) grounding operations of all flying schools nationwide during the papal visit. Meanwhile, Philippine Airlines (PAL) has canceled some 73 domestic flights, while 88 other domestic and 32 international flights were adjusted for their arrival and departure during Jan. 15 to 19.

PAL will adjust the arrival/departure on Jan. 15, 17 and 19 that includes flights coming from London, Sydney, Busan, Narita, Beijing, Darwin, Singapore, Bangkok, Fukuoka, Macau, Hong Kong, Los Angeles, Guam, Riyadh and Abu Dhabi.

Budget airline Cebu Pacific canceled some 82 domestic and 17 international flights on Jan. 15, as well as two domestic flights on Jan. 16 and another 38 domestic flights on Jan. 17.

Some 92 domestic and eight international were canceled on Jan. 19, the day the pope departs for Rome.

PAL and Cebu Pacific canceled their flights to give way to the arrival and departure of Pope Francis, as well as his visit to Leyte.

Private hospitals also volunteered to help in the preparations for the papal visit.

The Private Hospitals Association of the Philippines Inc. (PHAPi) led by president Rustico Jimenez said they have coordinated with Assistant Health Secretary Elmer Punzalan to augment the agency’s medical teams.

“We offered our help the DOH. We have people that we can deploy in case they need additional manpower. Our ambulances are also on stand by for emergency,” Jimenez said.

PHAPi hospitals have also organized frontlines in their facilities that would handle patients related to the papal visit.

Philippine Red Cross (PRC) secretary general Gwendolyn Pang added they have put up a field emergency hospital at the Cultural Center of the Philippine complex to accommodate up to 150 patients.

Pang said the hospital is manned by health professionals from various specialties and is equipped with X-ray and ECG machines and other equipment used in performing minor surgeries.

“Although we don’t want it to happen, we are preparing for mass casualty incident. We have trained people to attend to various types of cases,” Pang said.

Some 17,000 soldiers and 20,000 policemen will protect Pope Francis during his visit.

Threats from the homegrown Abu Sayyaf extremists are among those being considered by security forces tasked to provide protection to Pope Francis.

Aquino has designated about 350 members of the Peacekeeping Forces in the Golan Heights as part of those who will secure the pontiff. They have already been training under the leadership of Lt. Col. Ted Dumusmog for their new mission.

The military has deployed 400 troops to help in the security in Tacloban City, Leyte.

Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) spokesman Col. Restituto Padilla said air and naval assets were also deployed in Leyte.

Padilla said that in Leyte alone, the AFP has already deployed 7,000 troops coming from various military units in Luzon and Mindanao.

Some 40,000 civilian volunteers will be deployed to help government authorities maintain peace and order during the papal visit.

Interior and Local Government Secretary Manuel Roxas II said the large number of people fielded is to ensure the safety of the pope and the mammoth crowd eager to see the Church leader up close.

“We want to ensure peace and order in the events and route motorcades. We cannot avoid our public’s fervor for God and Pope Francis,” Roxas said.

Fine tuning

Philippine National Police officer-in-charge Deputy Director General Leonardo Espina said an elaborate security measure involving the 25,000-strong police force will ensure the safety of the pope and the people.

“We are not leaving anything to chance in our preparations for the visit of Pope Francis. And we have drawn contingencies for every foreseeable scenario,” Espina said. “The PNP is putting its best foot forward.”

On the other hand, the policemen tasked to secure the pope gave assurance there would be no leaks regarding the security arrangement of the papal visit, particularly in Manila.

Some observers noted the dry-run gave away the secrets of the security arrangements for the pope, which could be taken advantage of by forces “out to embarrass the Aquino government.”

National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) chief Director Carmelo Valmoria assured the public it would not be “giving away” secrets.

The NCRPO, along with the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) and other government agencies involved in the security of the papal visit conducted a dry-run of their security arrangements along the stretch of Roxas Boulevard from Pasay City and Manila at 7 p.m. Monday, causing heavy traffic and earning the ire of the motoring public.

Another dry run was held late last night, to avoid the traffic jams last Monday.

MMDA chairman Francis Tolentino said the dry runs were done at the request of Vatican officials.

“The Vatican wanted the dry run done during rush hour. We do not have any more time to do this,” Tolentino said.

Tolentino added last Monday night’s dry run also simulated the actual speed of the pope mobile that will be traveling at around 12 to 15 kilometers per hour during the trip from Villamor Airbase in Pasay to the Nunciature in Manila.

Valmoria also emphasized the dry runs were intended to test the security arrangements during the pope’s visit and determine lapses that would be “immediately fine-tuned.”

“We are not showing the nitty-gritty and other components of our close-in security of the pope here,” Valmoria said. “We are only out to practice our security arrangements and immediately plug the loopholes we discovered.”

Some observers, however, noted that during the visit of Pope John Paul II in 1995, organizers did not bother to conduct dry runs of security arrangements to keep troublemakers in the dark about their security plans. – With Non Alquitran, Roel Pareño, Edith Regalado, Mike Frialde, Rudy Santos, Cecille Suerte Felipe, Sheila Crisostomo, Jaime Laude