Pasay gay bar raided by police

Twenty-five macho dancers were arrested by policemen in a raid on a gay bar allegedly featuring "bold shows" in Pasay City yesterday morning.

Superintendent Eduardo dela Cerna, Pasay City police chief, said the city government was preparing the issuance of a closure order against the Big Pap bar and restaurant along Aurora Boulevard, Pasay City.

It was learned that Pasay City police operatives raided the nightclub at around 1 a.m. The arrests were made after a male dancer, identified as Mark Reyes, was allegedly seen by police agents, posing as customers, dancing nude on stage.

However, observers pooh-poohed the raid because the lawmen again failed to arrest the owner or a manager of the establishment.

They noted that unless owners of the erring nightclubs are themselves arrested, most police raids on nightclubs are usually done merely for show or for extortion purposes.

It was learned that many other gay bars proliferate along Aurora Boulevard and are not subjected to the same raids by the City Pasay police.

Sources pointed out that even live sex shows, commonly known as "toro," take place regularly in one gay bar along Aurora Boulevard but has remained untouched by the Pasay City police.

Meanwhile, employees of the Manila Regional Trial Court Branch 50 located at the Manila City Hall were alarmed after receiving a bomb threat yesterday morning.

In a report to Manila Mayor Lito Atienza, Superintendent Ernesto Iba, chief of the Western Police District-Special Operations Group, said the bomb threat was received by court stenographer Militar Bernardo at about 8:20 a.m.

According to Bernardo, the call was made by a male caller who said that a bomb would explode inside the city hall by 9 a.m. – Rainier Allan Ronda and Mike Frialde