The Don Sergio Osmeña Sr. Memorial National High School is one of the 20 billeting quarters that will be catering to the delegates of the upcoming Palarong Pambansa 2024 in Cebu City. | CDN Photo/ Christian Dave Cuizon
CEBU CITY, Philippines — Around 2,000 members of the advance parties who will be taking part in the Palarong Pambasa 2024 have already arrived to their billeting quarters in Cebu City a few days before the opening ceremony on July 9.
This was relayed by Police Lieutenant Colonel Janette Rafter, deputy director for operations of the Cebu City Police Office (CCPO), during a press conference on Wednesday, July 3.
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According to Rafter, around 2,000 participants have settled in at their billeting quarters in preparation for the much-awaited event that will begin next week until July 16.
Moreover, the rest of the around 15,000 guests are expected to arrive in the city later this week.
The opening ceremony for the Palarong Pambansa 2024 is scheduled on Tuesday, July 9 at the Cebu City Sports Center.
The parade is initially set to begin at 2:30 p.m., according to Rafter. However, this is still subject to change as more VIPS are expected to attend the event.
Rafter said that a total of 80 personnel from the Regional Mobile Force Battalion in Central Visayas (RMFB-7) had been deployed to the 20 billeting areas since Friday, June 28.
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The officers immediately started their duties after the send-off ceremony held at the South Road Properties (SRP) grounds.
However, Rafter assured that the remaining personnel who were not deployed will proceed with their usual law enforcement duties.
She added that they would be on full alert on the day of the opening and that all of their personnel would be on duty for the duration of the event, as directed by Police Colonel Ireneo Dalogdog, CCPO director
On Tuesday, July 2, authorities conducted an inspection of some of the billeting quarters for Palaro in order to check the condition of the areas where the athletes would be spending time before and after their games.
In addition, they conducted a walkthrough of the route for the parade for the opening day from the starting position up to the Cebu City Sports Center. This was to evaluate the parade arrangement of participating regions and to determine the necessary adjustments they would need to make to ensure a smooth flow.
Rafter said that it would be important for them to check every detail as all of the 12,000 athletes were encouraged to join the opening ceremony on July 9. | with Arwen Pondoc, CNU Intern