Church distributes 78,000 tickets for Pope's Mass in Leyte

MANILA, Philippines - The Archdiocese of Palo has distributed over 78,000 tickets to parishioners who will attend the Holy Mass that will be celebrated by Pope Francis at the Tacloban airport January next year, a Church official said on Wednesday.

Reverend Father Cris Militante, media coordinator for the Papal visit of the Archdiocese of Palo, said in an interview with Church-run Radyo Veritas that they are expecting around 1,000 representatives from the different parishes in Leyte to attend the event.

The tickets, though not required, will serve as passes for people who would fill up the main quadrangle of the venue, the prelate said.

"Dadalhin po ito ng mga representatives ng mga parokya kasi as of now nakikita namin na we were requiring at least 1,000 representatives from every parish dito sa Archdiocese of Palo. We have more than 78 parishes and mission stations na pupuno doon sa area pero hindi naman ibig sabihin nun na kung sino lang yun mapipili eh sila lang ang maiimbitahan sa Misa, sila lang po ay may space sa loob ng apron na ikwa-quadrants namin," Father Militante said.

"Yung ticket po mamimigay po kami ng ticket as sort of identification just to control, just for the purpose of crowd control dun po sa apron pero hindi yun for sale, hindi yun for VIP’s but just to control yung mga tao na papasok sa quadrants na ipo-provide natin sa loob ng apron area," the prelate added.

Meanwhile, the Archdiocese of Palo is continuously coordinating with authorities for the security of the Pope who will be attending several gatherings in Leyte.