BACOLOD City – More than 2,000 uniformed personnel from the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) will be deployed in this capital city to secure the 21-day MassKara Festival.
Senior Superintendent Francisco Ebreo, head of the Bacolod City Police Office (BCPO), said they want to make this year’s MassKara “more peaceful” than last year’s.
Half of the 2,033 PNP and PCG personnel will arrive in Bacolod on Oct. 7 – a day before the opening of the annual festival that celebrates the resilience of Bacolodnons.
On Oct. 15, another batch that will complete 75 percent of the security personnel will be mobilized.
Full security force will be deployed come Oct. 24 – two days before the three-day festival highlights.
Last year, 1,587 uniformed personnel were mobilized for MassKara, Ebreo said.
There are still three festival sites this year – the public plaza, city hall and the Tourism Strip on Lacson Street.
Ebreo said the increased number of security personnel is not only for MassKara. It will also be for the filing of certificates of candidacy on Oct. 11 to 17.
The BCPO chief also said they are considering the peace and order situation in nearby areas, where there were reported bomb threats.
Furthermore, some security personnel will respond should there be mass demonstrations.
Ebreo said officials from the PNP headquarters in Camp Crame have yet to approve the gun ban for MassKara, which was supposed to take effect yesterday.
A signal jamming request is also pending at the national headquarters./PN
