The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) will enforce a no-sail zone at a portion of the Pasig River near the Malacañang area in Manila during the inauguration of President-elect Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. on June 30.
The closure of the Malacañang Restricted Area will be from the Hospicio de San Jose up to Pureza in Santa Mesa, Manila, Lieutenant Commander Michael Encina said Wednesday in a television report.
The PCG will issue a notice for affected stakeholders near the presidential palace, as well as deploy floating assets in Manila Bay.
Coast Guard Commandant Admiral Artemio Abu, however, said there is no need to declare a no-sail zone in the bay, as they have not yet received any specific threat regarding Marcos’ inauguration.
The PCG will deploy up to 500 of its personnel during the ceremony.
The Department of the Interior and Local Government earlier tapped the Coast Guard to uphold public safety and security on the first day of the next administration.
Through its fleet, the PCG will dispatch rigid hull inflatable boats, aluminum boats, and personal watercraft to provide a stronger maritime patrol in the vicinity waters off Manila Bay and Pasig River.
Security and medical personnel will also be deployed.
The DILG tapped the Coast Guard to augment security forces during Marcos’ inauguration as the country’s 17th president amid reports communist groups are still plotting to disrupt his inauguration on Thursday next week.
“Rest assured that the PCG will work side by side with the Armed Forces of the Philippines, Philippine National Police, and other concerned government agencies to realize a safe, secure, and peaceful assumption of the 17th President of the Republic of the Philippines,” said Abu on Tuesday.
“Leftist organizers” have been gathering in Tarlac, Cavite, Pampanga, and Laguna in the past weeks to mobilize people and the outgoing Duterte government is taking this seriously, DILG Undersecretary Jonathan Malaya said in a statement, without mentioning names or groups.
Malaya made the statement after former rebels on Monday said communist groups have started organizing farmers in Tarlac to disrupt the inauguration next week.
The former rebels revealed this during a media briefing organized by the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF ELCAC)—for which Malaya is also the spokesman.
Danny Pata
“We respect the people’s rights to free expression, peaceably assemble, and the exercise of their democratic rights but this has to be done within the bounds of the law,” he said.
“Therefore, we advise all protesters to hold their peaceful demonstrations in Manila’s designated freedom parks such as Plaza Miranda, Plaza Dilao, Plaza Moriones, and Liwasang Bonifacio. There are so many to choose from,” the official added.
