NCRPO: Traslacion successful amid complaints

MANILA, Philippines — Despite some complaints over the new security measures, the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) has declared the recently concluded Traslacion a success. 

Brig. Gen. Debold Sinas, NCRPO director, said they were able to effectively implement their security plans in one of the fastest processions of the Black Nazarene in recent years.

“We declare that the coverage and security preparations for the Traslacion as a success,” Sinas told reporters yesterday.

Actual deployment reached 18,799, with 2,431 personnel from the Special Action Force serving as the human wall for the andas or carriage. 

There were 10,795 personnel from the different districts of NCRPO deployed, and another 5,428 policemen to secure peace and order and backup forces. 

The procession on Thursday ran for over 16 hours with around 3.03 million devotees joining the rites up to Quiapo Church, faster than the Traslacion in 2019 that lasted for about 21 hours. 

Sinas noted that one of the challenges were some hostile devotees who questioned and violated security measures set by police. 

Philippine National Police (PNP) spokesman Brig. Gen. Bernard Banac said the police force asks for apologies and understanding following some scuffles between authorities and devotees during the procession because of the new measures.

There were at least two personnel from the Philippine Army and the NCRPO Mobile Force Battalion who were injured during the procession. One sustained a broken arm while another broke his leg. 

The PNP also recorded 405 medical cases in the length of the Nazarene’s route. The Philippine Red Cross (PRC) said 26 individuals sustained major injuries, such as bone dislocation, fracture and other serious ailments and 14 of these were transported to hospitals.

Around 790 individuals were brought to PRC’s posts to have their blood pressure checked. 

In the span of three days from Jan. 7 till the end of the procession, 73 persons were nabbed for different violations of local ordinances. At least 40 people were nabbed for violating Manila’s ordinance for breach of peace, while others were for drinking in public and violation of the alcohol and smoking ban. 

The Quiapo Church and the Manila Police District (MPD) also defended the strict crowd management that the police employed during the Traslacion.

“We have continuously informed the public about the security preparations for the procession. Better safe than sorry. But in the end, the devotees prevailed and see what happened,” MPD director Brig. General Bernabe Balba told The STAR.

Some of the devotees said they were not happy with the new policy, while others welcomed it. 

Excessive force

The devotees said some of them were injured because the policemen did not allow them to clamber atop the image and even dragged them away from ropes that pulled the carriage. 

The procession started smoothly at exactly 4:16 a.m. with more than 2,000 policemen flanking the carriage, but as soon as the andas reached Ayala Boulevard, thousands of devotees successfully broke the police formation and forced their way to the ropes.

After the jostling and exchange of verbal abuses, the policemen finally gave in and dispersed. The devotees finally took over the reins on Ayala Bridge and had control as the carriage crossed Carlos Palanca Street. 

Among those destroyed along the way was a four-wheel vehicle with a police sticker.

Commission on Human Rights (CHR) spokesperson Jacqueline de Guia called on the PNP leadership to investigate the strangling of a devotee and the incident involving Southern Police District (SPD) chief Brig. Gen. Nolasco Bathan, who took the phone of GMA reporter Jun Veneracion. – With Paolo Romero, Janvic Mateo, Ralph Edwin Villanueva, Rey Galupo, Robertzon Ramirez, Ghio Ong