LRT ready for Nazarene fest; devotees urged to keep area litter-free

With the Catholic faithful expected to flock in droves to the Quiapo area in Manila for the annual Feast of the Black Nazarene on Monday, Jan. 9, the Light Rail Transit Authority (LRTA) announced it has put in place measures to ensure the safety and comfort of devotees.

 

LRTA will deploy medical teams and set up extra ticket booths on Monday to accommodate an expected rush of passengers.

 

LRTA administrator Rafael Rodriguez said there will be "enough trains and station personnel" to serve the devotees and regular passengers on Monday.

 

Additional ticket booths will be opened to sell fully-coded tickets to accommodate the expected surge of passengers, the LRTA added in a news release.

 

The LRTA also assured the safety and security of the devotees with additional security staff and K-9 units.

 

Philippine National Police personnel will also be visible at stations and terminals of LRT Lines 1 and 2.

 

On the other hand, a medical team and Philippine Red Cross volunteers will be stationed at the United Nations and Carriedo stations from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. to offer assistance.

 

"As traditionally practiced, barefoot devotees heading to Quiapo church will be allowed to take the trains," the LRTA said.

 

A total of 582,989 passengers took the LRT on the Feast of the Black Nazarene in 2009, one of the highest ridership levels attained by LRTA.

 

During the same event in 2011, the LRT transported 362,912 passengers.

 

'Keep fiesta litter-free'

 

Meanwhile, an eco watch group appealed to Black Nazarene devotees to be careful where they put their trash during the annual procession.

 

EcoWaste Coalition lamented the rampant littering which has characterized past fiestas of the Black Nazarene.

“We believe that our nation's deeply-rooted devotion to Nuestro Padre Jesus Nazareno should reflect a collective respect for our fragile environment,” said Roy Alvarez, the group's president, in an email sent to Msgr. Jose Clemente Ignacio, parish priest of the Minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene (Quiapo Church) .

 

He also asked Ignacio to remind the Black Nazarene's devotees to "exercise utmost environmental responsibility in the performance of their sacred vows and commitments, particularly in the manner discards are managed and disposed of."

 

“We do not glorify the Black Nazarene by leaving garbage along the processional route,” he added.

 

“Littering does not only clog storm drains and cause flashfloods, but also defaces the image of Christ that is present in all things that make up the ecosystems,” Alvarez said.

 

Excerpts of the Dec. 31 email were posted Monday on the group's blog site.

 

According to the group, Msgr. Ignacio assured them that Quiapo Church will remind devotees not to litter.

 

"Please be assured that Quiapo Church is responding to the need to love the environment," it quoted Ignacio as saying in his reply.

 

"Our Ministry for Environmental Concerns has been active not just during fiestas but the whole year round. We admit we have not been a 100% near the ideal considering the volume of devotees who come to our fiestas. But we have improved through the years. Thanks to your constant reminders and letters," Msgr. Ignacio added.

 

"We shall remind the devotees not to throw their garbage anywhere," he said.

 

Msgr. Ignacio also told the group youth and student volunteers will help clean up the Quiapo area after the Masses even as he encouraged group members to volunteer in the Ministry's responses during the fiesta.

 

He added the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority and the Department of Public Sanitation of the City of Manila will also be helping and following the procession route.

 

The main feast and procession for the Feast of the Black Nazarene will start from the Quirino Grandstand in Rizal Park on Jan. 9 and will proceed to the streets around Quiapo following the old traditional route before ending at the Minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene (Quiapo Church). –KG, GMA News