By Rod Lagusad
Police apprehended more than 150 individuals in the vicinity of Quiapo Church on Good Friday (April 2) for violating the ‘no religious gatherings’ rule amid the strict implementation of enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) in Metro Manila and four nearby provinces.
Plaza Miranda Police Community Precinct Commander Police Maj. Aldin Balagat said that as of 3:30 p.m. today, they have recorded a total of 155 violators. This figure is about five times higher than the 35 violators apprehended yesterday, Maundy Thursday.
The authorities told the violators that only authorized persons outside residence (APOR) are allowed to go outside and that religious gatherings are prohibited during ECQ.
The police officers recorded the personal details of those who were caught, while Balagat added that the violations will be forwarded to the City Prosecutor’s Office.
“Ang ginagawa natin dito since walang ordinance ticket, ang practice dito ay fino-forward natin sa City Prosecutor’s office. Nire-refer natin sila kung anong violation, kung anong infraction ang nagawa nila,” he explained.
[What we do here, because we have no ordinance tickets, the practice here is that we forward (the cases) to the City Prosecutor’s office, we refer the violations, infractions to them.]
Balagat noted that most of the violators are not residents of Manila, and added there are enough police officers in place if more people should come to the area.
“Pinasyal ko lang siya”
One of those who came to Quiapo Church is Arturo Apante, a devotee of the Black Nazarene statue housed in the church.
Apante carried his own replica of the Black Nazarene on his motorcycle.
“Panata ko na po, ‘to taun-taon ginagawa po namin ‘to. Eh ngayon, kahit ECQ, hindi naman nagdidikit-dikit. Saka pinasyal ko lang ‘yung Nazareno ko, kasi dalawang taon na siyang hindi nakalabas, ngayon lang uli. Kaya minabuti kong pumunta rito sa Quiapo, para makapasyal man siya kahit sandali,” he said.
[This is my vow, we do this every year. Now, even if it’s ECQ, people aren’t crowding, anyway. And I just took my Nazareno out for a spin, because he hasn’t been out in two years, only just now. That’s why I made the effort of coming here to Quiapo, to take him out even for a little while.]
He added that he will go to other churches near to his home to tour the replica.
Apante said he belongs to a group that practices a form of penance that involves flagellating their backs every Holy Week.
He also said that he understands the strict implementation of the health protocols being done by the authorities. Although the police did not nab him along with the over 150 others, he was given a stern warning.
As of 12 noon today (April 2), the City of Manila recorded 587 new active cases of Covid-19. Overall, the city has now 4,137 active Covid-19 cases.
