Green groups urge devotees to keep Black Nazarene Traslacion garbage-free

Millions of Nazareno devotees join the procession of Translacion in Quirino Grand Stand. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO/JILSON SECKLER TIU

Keep the 2018 Black Nazarene Traslacion “trash-less.”

This was the call of pro-environment groups on Thursday, as they urged millions of Black Nazarene devotees to renounce littering and maintain “zero-waste” as Manila braces for the massive annual procession on Jan. 9.

The EcoWaste Coalition, Buklod Tao and the Green Brigade Committee of the Quiapo Church, while staging an advocacy call at the Plaza Miranda, implored the devotees to “express their faith in a manner that is respectful of the environment.”

“The Catholic devotion to the Black Nazarene is truly breathtaking and splendid. Sadly the annual ‘Traslacion’ is sullied by the unrestrained littering at the ‘Pahalik’ and vigil site in Luneta and along the processional route,” Zero Waste Campaigner Daniel Alejandre said in a statement.

The groups noted that in 2016, the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) collected about 315 tons of garbage along the processional route.

Just like every year, the Manila City government has designated personnel to clean and secure the areas within the route of the procession, City Administrator Jojo Alcovendas said.

Teams are also assigned to clean right after the andas (carriage) pass through a certain part of the route, he added.

The green groups also reminded the public to observe the following:

1. Follow Luneta’s “no littering, no smoking” regulation;
2. Refrain from smoking or vaping on January 9 as an “act of penance”;
3. Return used beverage and food containers and waste, including bamboo skewers, to givers or vendors for proper disposal;
4. Desist from spitting and urinating in public (do not pee in a PET bottle); and to
5. Bring a reusable cloth bag for “pasalubong.”

The week-long feast that started last Dec. 31, 2017 and will culminate on Tuesday with the Traslacion, recalls the transfer on Jan. 9, 1787, of a copy of the image of the Black Nazarene from its original site at the San Nicolas Tolentino church in Intramuros to the Quiapo church.