METRO MANILA: UNEVENTFUL, PEACEFUL ALL SAINTS' DAY
[PHOTO AT LEFT - HIGH-RISE: A boy prepares to light a candle at the public cemetery in Barrio Concepcion in Marikina City yesterday. Photo by WALTER BOLLOZOS ]
MANILA, November 2, 2004 (STAR) National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) chief Director Avelino Razon Jr. declared yesterday’s observance of All Saints’ Day in Metro Manila as "generally peaceful."
As of 4 p.m. yesterday, Razon said not a single untoward incident was recorded as he credited the proper deployment of 10,000 NCRPO personnel at cemeteries in Metro Manila for the peaceful and orderly observance of the holiday.
"We came well prepared and we are amply rewarded," said Razon, as he congratulated the five police districts of the NCRPO "for a job well done."
Apart from uniformed personnel, elements of the NCRPO’s elite fighting unit Regional Special Action Unit (RSAU) and the Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) were deployed to prevent criminals and terrorists from taking advantage of the situation.
Members of the NCRPO’s Traffic Enforcement Group (TEG) were also scattered along busy thoroughfares to guide motorists to their destinations. Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Edgar Aglipay reported a 60 percent reduction in street crimes during the three-day break.
Aglipay gave the security assessment after he was briefed by district directors in the NCRPO when he personally inspected public and private cemeteries in Metro Manila yesterday.
At the Manila North Cemetery, Western Police District director Chief Superintendent Pedro Bulaong presented to the PNP chief hundreds of bladed weapons and liquor seized from visitors.
Aglipay proceeded to Manila after he laid a flower wreath at the Battle Monument for 3,816 policemen and former members of the defunct Philippine Constabulary slain while performing their duty.
From Camp Crame, Aglipay went to the Manila North, La Loma and Chinese cemeteries, Libingan ng mga Bayani, Manila South Cemetery and the Manila Memorial Park where his wife’s nephew, matinee idol Rico Yan, was laid to rest.
The PNP chief also paid respects to his departed relatives including his father at the Manila Memorial Park.
In Manila, WPD chief Bulaong said there was a significant decrease in the number of confiscated deadly weapons with only 17 this year compared to the 1,000 last year.
Police said 20 teenagers, with ages from 16 to 19, were rounded up inside the cemetery while engaged in a pot session at around 6 a.m. The suspects were immediately taken to the WPD headquarters.
The improvement of the entrance of the Manila North Cemetery also helped in the smooth flow of the crowds coming in and going out of the cemetery. Manila North Cemetery is the largest public cemetery in the country with a lot area of 54 hectares.
On orders of Manila Mayor Lito Atienza, Bulaong said the WPD segregated the entrance for men and women for the body and bag searches.
WPD operatives and the Manila City Hall Matapat group released 843 claim stubs for tents with pipes, gardening equipment, playing cards, bottles of liquor and paint thinner.
Matapat spokesperson Ronilo Fernandez said dogs and other pets were also prohibited inside the cemetery. "It could cause inconvenience to others and may eventually result in trouble. So we decided not to allow any pets inside the cemetery."
Quiet Up North
In the Camanava area, the mood in the cemeteries was "uneventful" compared to last year, authorities reported yesterday.
Chief Superintendent Noe Wong, Northern Police District Office (NPDO) chief, said the peace and order situation in the Camanava area was "generally peaceful."
Police sources also remarked the comparatively sparse attendance of the faithful at the tombs of their dearly departed may be also "a sign of the hard times."
Motorized tricycles and pedicabs, however, made a killing especially in portions where motor vehicles were taken off the normal routes and diverted to ease traffic going to the cemeteries. Most boasted of making double or triple their usually daily take.
By 3 p.m., the main road were surprisingly "deserted" by normal standards.
The atmosphere at the public cemeteries and the more upscale private parks was generally subdued mainly attributed to the ban strictly implemented against liquor, gambling, carrying of deadly weapons and stereos inside the places for the dead.
At presstime, Caloocan police reported only two cases of illegal possession of deadly weapons. Malabon had 14, Navotas had four while Valenzuela had seven arrested with bladed weapons. In Navotas, two men were arrested for burglary in the police’s Oplan Kaluluwa Drive from Oct. 30 to Nov. 1.
In Quezon City, Central Police District (CPD) director Senior Superintendent Nicasio Radovan said the situation in all seven public and private cemeteries in Quezon City was "generally peaceful and quiet.
Authorities reported no record of any violence or untoward incident .
According to policemen detailed at the La Loma Cemetery, one of the four public cemeteries of Quezon City, the absence of untoward incidents could be attributed to the relatively low turnout of visitors this year.
"It is possible that most of the people have chosen to remember their dear departed loved ones at home. Also, we should note that many people have gone to the cemeteries as early as Thursday," Radovan said.
Customary inspection at the entrance of Holy Cross Cemetery led authorities to confiscate 20 bladed weapons and several bottles of beer and alcoholic beverages.
Meanwhile, Southern Police District director Chief Superintendent Wilfredo Garcia said there were no major crimes reported at all 25 cemeteries in southern Metro Manila.
As of noon, more than 25,000 people had trooped to the Manila Memorial Park in Parañaque City, the largest cemetery in the district, but not a single untoward incident was reported.
Officers manning a police command vehicle said the crowd was expected to reach 40,000 last night, "but this was still fewer than the number that visited last year."
A police officer said one of the NCRPO command vans was deployed to the cemetery because "prominent personalities had been expected to come here."
Buried at the Manila Memorial Cemetery are former Sen. Benigno "Ninoy" Aquino Jr., matinee idol Rico Yan, and other celebrities.
At the nearby Loyola Memorial Park, police estimated the crowd at 7,000 as of 3 p.m.
Precinct 4 commander Chief Inspector Quirino Nandad reported that just like in other cemeteries, there were also no untoward incidents in the cemetery, where more than 30 policemen were deployed.
More than 1,250 joint operatives of police and traffic enforcers and 25 mobile patrol units have been deployed in the south for the government’s "Oplan Kaluluwa". — Non Alquitran, Christina Mendez, Cecille Suerte Felipe, Nestor Etolle, Jerry Botial, Pete Laude, Katherine Adraneda, Edu Punay