‘Hand of God’ untangles traffic mess

MANILA: An 83-year-old Catholic cardinal in the Philippines came to the rescue of thousands of stranded motorists over the weekend after single-handedly untangling a traffic jam in Manila during a typhoon.

Retired Manila cardinal Gaudencio Rosales took matters into his own hands on Sunday as he traversed a typhoonlashed Philippine highway on the outskirts of the capital to help settle a traffic dispute.

“We were trapped for over an hour and we were rushing to another engagement. I said to myself: ‘we cannot take this anymore,’” he told AFP yesterday.

With no traffic policemen in sight amid the onslaught of Typhoon Goni, Rosales said he zipped up his raincoat and walked nearly 1km to find out what was causing the 1.6km long snarl, the likes of which have become a daily misery for Filipinos.

“We’re all in a hurry,” he said to the erring motorists, after discovering six cars fighting over two lanes in Santo Tomas town on Manila’s outskirts.

As his boots filled up with rainwater, the hooded old man used hand signals to force the vehicles to back up, freeing up the jam.

The rain later let up to reveal a giant crucifix peeking out of his jacket. The chastened motorists then got out of their vehicles to kiss his ring.

“They were very apologetic,” Rosales said of the culprits.

Rosales, who is one of the four cardinals in the country, said he endured his share of hours-long traffic jams during his eight-year term as archbishop of Manila beginning in 2003.

But for as long as the gridlocks are there, Rosales said he would serve as a make-do traffic cop given the chance.

“Next time, I’ll be sure to bring a whistle,” he said laughing. – AFP