Less people traveling this weekend

MANILA, Philippines – Less people are going to the provinces this weekend for All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day.

“The crisis could be a factor in the slowdown (among people traveling to the provinces),”said Mon Le-gazpi, manager of the Araneta Center Bus Terminal.

Legazpi said that as of yesterday morning the number of people bound for the provin- ces has decreased by about 10 percent from last year.

“Maybe the people are saving up and thinking that instead of spending their money for these trips, they will just allot it for the (Christmas) holidays,” he said.

Legazpi said the Araneta Bus Terminal holds about 250 buses everyday on a regular basis. The number increases to between 300 and 350 buses during special occasions.

Meanwhile, Philippine National Police chief Director General Jesus Verzosa, along with Metro Manila police commander Director Jefferson Soriano and Quezon City police director Senior Superintendent Magtanggol Gatdula, distributed pamphlets on do’s and don’ts during All Saints’ Day and All Soul’s Day to passengers boarding buses at the Araneta Center yesterday.

“We are just reminding our people of the things to avoid so they won’t get victimized,” Soriano said.

Gatdula said they have not received any threats against public places, including bus terminals and cemeteries, that will be filled with people over the weekend.

“Our preparation is always against any worst-case scenario because we don’t want to give criminal elements any opportunity to strike,” he said.

Soriano and Gatdula also checked security measures at the nearby MetroRail Transit station.

At seaports, Coast Guard Commandant Vice Adm. Wilfredo Tamayo raised the alert level to red in anticipation of increased volume of passengers traveling to the provin-ces.

Tamayo personally checked security at the South Harbor and North Harbor in Manila yesterday.

“We will be on alert for a week,” he said. “We have been on alert since the evening of Oct. 29, until Nov. 5.”

The Department of Transportation and Communication (DOTC) recently launched Eagle Eye Project Oplan Kaluluwa 2008 Kaagapay ng Mamamayan, a joint effort of the PCG, Philippine Ports Authority and the Maritime Industry Authority.

It has also set up Passenger Assistance Center (PAC) help desks in piers and deployed bomb-sniffing dogs and roving Coast Guardsmen to ensure passenger safety.

Tamayo said sea marshals comprised of Coast Guardsmen, police and soldiers will also be aboard passenger ships on every trip.

“We recently set up the PCG Deployable Response Group (DRG) which is a combined team of medical personnel, K-9, anti-terrorist members, sea marshals and volunteers from the PCG Auxiliary,” he said.

During Tamayo’s visit to the Negros Navigation Shipping Lines at Pier 2 of North Harbor at 10:30 a.m. yesterday, security personnel seized two pistols and several bladed weapons.

“The weapons would be turned over to the captain and they would be returned once they reach their port of destination.

“As for firearms, civilians should have a permit to carry, while law enforcers should show their mission orders.”

Gian Galvez, Negros Navigation corporate communications, marketing and sales manager, said that on All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day, they are expecting the volume of passengers to triple.

“During regular days, the number of passengers per ship ranges from 500 to 600, but during this season we are expecting the number of passengers to reach an average of 1,500 on every trip,” he said.

Galvez said there was no fare increase during this peak season.

“But we have also observed that compared to last year, there are less travelers this year,” he said.

“We attribute this to two factors. One, we have a shorter vacation this year and second, there is a global economic crunch.

“Before, students and businessmen would travel two or three times a year, but this time they would decide if they would make the travel during All Souls’ Day or during Christmas time.”

Galvez advised passengers to be at the pier three hours before their scheduled departure to give time for additional security measures. — With Evelyn Macairan