3,000 cops to be fielded in Q.C. for ‘undas’

MANILA, Philippines—Some 3,000 policemen, traffic enforcers and barangay personnel will be deployed Thursday to secure public and private cemeteries, columbaries and bus terminals in Quezon City.

Quezon City Mayor Herbert Bautista ordered all city departments, particularly the Quezon City Police District, the department of public order and safety, the barangay operations center, and the civil registry, to prepare for visitors trooping to cemeteries for the observance of All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day

Security measures at the public cemeteries in Bagbag and Baesa, both in Novaliches, as well as in the private graveyards and columbaries have been set. The QCPD organized Task Force Kaluluwa for anti-crime operations as well as security deployment at cemeteries and columbaries; bus terminals; mass transportation system; and other vital installations.

Department of public order and safety (DPOS) chief Elmo San Diego said that more than 400 personnel from his department have been tapped for deployment to help decongest roads leading to not only the three public cemeteries but also to the three private cemeteries, particularly the Eternal Garden Memorial Park in Balumbato, Himlayang Pilipino in Tandang Sora and Holy Cross on Quirino Highway.

Barangay officials were tapped to help the QCPD and the DPOS as well as to conduct anti-crime patrols in residential areas where most of the residents have gone to the provinces and left their homes unattended.

Personnel of the city’s Environmental Protection and Waste Management Department (EPWD) will be on standby and some 30 employees of the civil registry office will be deployed in the public cemeteries. Personnel from the civil registry office will provide assistance and address queries pertaining to the location of tombs.