‘Airtight security’ in place for Traslacion 2019 – NCRPO

The National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) will implement an “airtight security” as millions of devotees are expected to attend this year’s “Traslacion” or the transfer of the revered image of the Black Nazarene from Quirino Grandstand to Quiapo Church in Manila on Wednesday, January 9.

NCRPO Director Guillermo Eleazar said the 7,200-strong police force tasked to ensure the safety of the devotees for the procession were “all ready” and coordination with other agencies have been ironed out.

“All the coordination among the police, the military, the other agencies and even the government officials are very good so we expect that the conduct of Traslacion will

be smooth-sailing,” Eleazar said.

The NCRPO director said he inspected the 10 segments of the 6.1-km route of the procession last Saturday to check the readiness of the police commanders.

“They knew what to do but it’s a good thing to review them. We asked them if their policemen are all ready, how many barangays are under their jurisdiction, the number of people they are going to secure, closed-circuit television [CCTV] cameras, and the things that should not be brought and done,” Eleazar disclosed.

Aside from the ground inspection, Eleazar also conducted an aerial inspection of the areas of Traslacion along with top-ranking officers of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) aboard a military helicopter.

Around 2,000 soldiers from the Joint Task Force NCR will augment the security team.

Eleazar appealed to the public, especially those living along the route of the procession to remove all obstructions, especially cars and stalls. He said this was what he noticed when made a route inspection.

“There are a lot of illegally parked cars and vendors. Aside from our security preparation, we are also relying on the cooperation of the people living along the route of the procession. Otherwise, if we see problems, we might as well avoid those areas,” he noted.

“We will provide extra security in areas with bridges. We know for a fact that there are a lot of devotees waiting there yearly so we also posted personnel there,” he added.

Two more activities will be conducted prior to the January 9 procession. These are the blessing of the replicas of the Black Nazarene on January 7 and the “Pahalik” on January 8 where devotees are allowed to touch and kiss the image of the Black Nazarene at the Quirino Grandstand.

Procession of replicas

As a prelude to the much anticipated Traslacion procession of the revered Nuestro Padre Jesus Nazareno on Wednesday, hundreds of replicas of the Black Nazarene will be paraded through the streets of Quiapo, Manila at around 1:30 p.m. today by maroon clad devotees from different parts of the country.

Monsignor Hernando Coronel, rector of the Quiapo Church, will lead the blessing of the replicas after the procession.

Hundreds of devotees have been converging at the Quiapo Church (Minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene or St. John the Baptist Parish) since December 31 for the annual parish thanksgiving mass and procession, as well as to attend the novena masses at 6 p.m., which will be celebrated until tomorrow, January 8.

This afternoon’s procession of the replicas of the Nazareno “will showcase not only centuries-old personal collections of sacred images that have been cared for and passed on from generations of devotees but the Filipinos’ unwavering faith, trust, and devotion to the Black Nazarene,” organizers said.

Father Douglas Badong, parochial vicar of the Quiapo Church said, they are hoping for devotees “to have a more spiritual journey this year that will help strengthen and deepen their faith in the Black Nazarene. We also hope to highlight the mission and responsibilities of the devotees who are ‘called’ by Christ to be of service to others,” he said. “Reflections, catechesis, and the mass during the vigil at the Quirino Grandstand tomorrow will focus on the mission of Black Nazarene devotees,” Badong said.

Tomorrow, Jan. 8, devotees will gather at the Quirino Grandstand in Luneta, where the Black Nazarene will be brought for an overnight vigil and a series of activities including the “pahalik” before the early morning mass and grand procession that will bring the image back to the Quiapo Church on Wednesday.

The Traslacion procession recalls the transfer of the Black Nazarene image from the Recollect Church in Intramuros, Manila to the Minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene in 1787. This year marks the 12th time that the Black Nazarene procession will start outside the Quiapo Church. The first time was in 2007 during the celebration of the 400th anniversary of the feast.

Activities to be held at the Quirino Grandstand include the traditional “Pahalik sa Poong Nazareno,” the reading of vespers, and a Holy Mass at midnight.

DOH is ready

The Department of Health (DOH) is prepared to respond to any untoward incident during the Feast of the Black Nazarene on Wednesday.

The DOH-National Capital Region said that it already alerted different hospitals in Manila for possible emergency cases.

“We have, on standby, our medical teams in different DOH hospitals,” said DOH-NCR Epidemiology and Health Emergency Cluster head Dr. Patrick Co.

Co said that they will be also deploying 14 emergency health teams in different parts of the procession route.

“If there is anyone in need of medical attention, our responders will be ready to provide onsite treatment,” he said.

Previously, some devotees sustained minor medical cases such as dizziness, lacerations, abrasions, high blood pressure, and sprain; and cases like fainting, difficulty in breathing, fractures, and seizures.

Quiapo Church officials said they are expecting around five million devotees to join in the annual procession.