AROUND 41,000 Dabawenyos visited their departed loved ones during the observance of All Souls Day 2024, the Davao City Police Office (DCPO) reported.
Captain Hazel Tuazon, DCPO spokesperson, said that they recorded a total of 41,248 visitors across 40 main cemeteries in the city on Saturday, November 2, compared to 24,465 recorded on All Saints’ Day, November 1.
Tuazon told Davao media that crowds would typically go to cemeteries to spend time at the graves of their departed loved ones. She added that the commemoration of such religious activities has been peaceful with no untoward incidents or significant events following the deployment of thousands of personnel composed of personnel from different government agencies.
To recall, the Davao City Public Safety and Security Office (PSSO) augmented its 13,136 integrated personnel to ensure the safety and peaceful observation of this year’s Undas.
All internal and external transportation hubs, terminals, establishments, churches, thoroughfares, and cemeteries were manned by personnel of different city government agencies and other security forces.
Meanwhile, Philippine National Police (PNP) spokesperson Brigadier General Jean Fajardo also announced that the observance of All Souls’ and All Saints’ Days across the country had been ‘generally peaceful,”
“Masaya tayong mag-report na naging mapayapa at maayos naman sa pangkalahatan nationwide ang naging paggunita ng Undas ngayong taon dahil wala naman tayong naitala na major incident na maaaring maka-disrupt ng paggunita ng Undas. Bagamat may mga naitala tayo, ‘yung sunog sa may Bagbag cemetery at ilang mga minor incidents, but all those ay hindi naman nakaapekto sa sitwasyon ng ating bansa,” Fajardo said in an interview with the national media.
(We are pleased to report that the observance of Undas this year was generally peaceful and orderly nationwide, as we did not record any major incidents that could disrupt the commemoration. Although we did record some incidents, such as the fire at Bagbag cemetery and a few minor incidents, none of these affected the overall situation in our country.)
According to Fajardo, 40,115 police officers were deployed to keep the peace and order during the Undas, especially in cemeteries, seaports, and other gathering spots. DEF with reports from Sunnex