Talisay police remind parents: Don’t bring kids in Holy Week activities

Police, members of the city’s Task Force COVID-19, together with church leaders planned the strategies and measures to implement religious activities during Holy Week in Talisay City. The photo was taken on April 6, 2022. | Photo courtesy of Randy Caballes FB page

CEBU CITY, Philippines — Parents and guardians are discouraged from bringing their children with them when attending religious activities for the Holy Week in Talisay City.

Crowd influx would be expected in these activities, such as the foot procession, and for security purposes, police and the religious sector were reminding parents and guardians to refrain from bringing with them their children, said Police Lieutenant Colonel Randy Caballes, chief of Talisay City Police Station.

“Ang mga parish priests sila na ang moannounce during sa ilang misa nga idiscourage during sa Mass and foot procession and other activities nga magdala og bata. Sila na mismo ang mag announce ug sila na pod ang nagkasabot nga idiscourage ang magdala og bata for security reasons labi na during the foot procession,” Caballes said.

(The parish priests will announce during the masses to discourage to bring children during the Mass and foot procession and other religious activities. They themselves would announce and they themselves would discourage the parents and guardians from bringing children in these actiities for security reasons especially during the foot procession.)

Apart from this, Caballes is also reminding the public to secure their houses before leaving, especially during dawn activities and Masses. 

To further secure the city, Caballes said that 80 to 90 percent of their total force will be deployed starting on Palm Sunday, April 10, 2022.

He added that they are also preparing for congestion to happen during this weeklong activity and the city’s traffic team had already laid its traffic plan in coordination with representatives from at least six parishes in the city.

“Ang area of concern lang sa atoa ug sa city traffic is kanang mga simbahan nga along the highway dihas Tabunok. Kanang St. Joseph Parish kay daplin sya sa dalan, giconsider gyud diha ang flow sa traffic and naa sad toy traffic plan ang CT-TODA nga giprepare,” he said.

(Our area of concern and the city traffic is the churches along the highway in Tabunok. St. Joseph Parish because it is at the side of the road, the flow of traffic is considered there and the CT-TODA had a traffic plan prepared for this.)

“Naa poy mga foot procession ang mga simbahan so mao to ang gisabutan during the meeting nga ipakita nila ang ilang mga schedules ug time ug rota para di magabot ang mga tawo during the procession,” Caballes said.

(There are also foot processions of the churches so we agreed during the meeting that they will show their schedules and the time and the route so that the participants of the the processions would not meet at the same route during these activities.)

Apart from securing the safety of the public outside churches, Caballes said that included in their deployment plan are establishments and shorelines.

With this, Caballes reminds the public to secure their houses by locking them before leaving and also to observe the minimum health protocols, especially the wearing of face masks and following the social distancing.

 Cebu

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