By Ferdinand Patinio and Christopher Lloyd Caliwan | Philippine News Agency
The grand procession or Traslacion of Jesus Nazareno officially ended at 10:50 a.m. Saturday, or after 30 hours, 50 minutes, and 1 second.
It was the longest in the history of the annual religious event, according to the Quiapo Church Command Post.
Last year’s procession from the Quirino Grandstand to the Minor Basilica and National Shrine of Jesus Nazareno lasted 20 hours and 45 minutes.
This year’s Traslacion left Quirino Grandstand at 4:00 a.m. Friday.
Quiapo Church also reported that over 9.6 million attended the fiesta celebration.
The Philippine National Police (PNP), on the other hand, said at least 7.3 million devotees were reported to have converged in various parts of Manila, based on drone shots and crowd estimates from the Quirino Grandstand, along the procession routes and up to Quiapo Church.
Acting PNP chief PLt.Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr. commended all commanders and uniformed personnel on the ground for their hard work, dedication and perseverance to secure the Feast of Jesus Nazareno.
“This is the longest Traslacion so far, and this an impressive show of faith and devotion of millions of Filipino devotees. On the part of the Philippine National Police, this is also a remarkable display of discipline, perseverance and commitment to our mandate of serving and protecting the people,” Nartatez said.
At least 18,000 police personnel were deployed, some from the Police Regional Offices in Central Luzon 3 and Calabarzon.
“Overall, we consider the Traslacion generally peaceful and orderly despite the sheer volume of devotees,” Nartatez added.
