Bottles thrown at buses; 2 injured

CEBU, Philippines — It has been a tradition for some people in Cebu to splash water at passing motorists as a way of celebrating the feast of St. John the Baptist every June 24.

But things turned a tad nasty this year after some revelers, instead of water, threw beer bottles at buses that were heading Toledo City from Cebu City.

A bus driver and a passenger ended up being injured after the incidents, according to Cebu provincial traffic manager Jonathan “Joy” Tumulak.

Tumulak said that at least three buses were reported to have been thrown beer bottles at by bystanders in Barangay Balirong, City of Naga and in Barangay Lutopan, Toledo City.

He said the first incident took place at around 3 a.m. Monday in Lutopan which resulted in the injury of the driver and the passenger. The other incidents were recorded at around 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. of that same day with different buses as targets this time.

Tumulak said that stones were used in the second incident while it was unclear what was used in the third.

After receiving the reports, Tumulak’s team alerted Police Regional Office-7 director, Brigadier General Debold Sinas, who, in turn, deployed his men to the area to stop them.

Tumulak urged the police officials in Naga and Toledo to rove the roads during the same time next year in order to prevent similar incidents. He said his office receives reports about buses being thrown stuff during the feast every year.

He also advised the public, especially those revelers who splash water and throw things at passing motorists, to tone down the celebration.

“Awhag lang pud ta sa atong kaigsoonan, dili lang unta apilan og binoang kay ang atong kabalak-an ana kay once maigo ang usa ka bus, simbako ma-rattle ang bus driver, daghan ang madisgrasya (We ask them to keep the celebration solemn and avoid throwing anything at them to prevent untoward incidents),” Tumulak said.

On the eve of the feast day of Saint John the Baptist, the Catholic Bishop Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) released a reminder to the public to “be smart enough not to waste water for the sake of merriment.”

Rev. Fr. Jerome Secillano, executive secretary of CBCP Permanent Committee on Public Affairs, issued that advice amid the water supply shortage gripping some parts of Metro Manila, as well as other parts of the country like Cebu.

“Those who will celebrate the feast of St. John the Baptist should be smart enough not to waste water for the sake of merriment especially in this time of water shortage,” Secillano was quoted as saying in a report.

“The lack of ‘water splashing’ should not dampen their fiesta spirit. Fiesta, after all, is a joyous celebration of faith and not of some mundane cultural traditions or customs,” he added. (FREEMAN)