A mammoth crowd of devotees takes part in the Mass that opened the nine-day Novena Masses in celebration of the Fiesta Señor at the Pilgrim Center of the Basilica Minore del Santo Niño on Jan. 9, 2020. |CDND Photo/Gerard Vincent Francisco
CEBU CITY, Philippines – Expect more police around and inside the Basilica Minore del Sto. Niño de Cebu compound starting today, Wednesday (January 15).
Organizers of the Fiesta Señor celebration and Cebu City police agreed to deploy additional cops at the Basilica and nearby areas to maintain peace and order for the 455th Fiesta Señor celebration.
“We will be placing 200 more police personnel at the Basilica,” Cebu City Police Office (CCPO) director Police Colonel Engelbert Soriano told reporters in an interview.
In a separate interview, Fr. Aladdin Luzon, chairperson of the cluster for safety, security, and peace and order of the Basilica, said they need the help of the police after learning that the crowd has overwhelmed the number of existing guards employed by the Basilica to keep everything under control.
“We observed that no less than 20,000 people are inside the Basilica. And we think this really overwhelms the existing guards of the Basilica. This is why we tapped the help of the police to provide more,” Luzon said in Cebuano.
The Fiesta Señor celebration will culminate with a High Solemn Mass, to be presided by Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma, this Sunday, January 19. /rcg