PHL 100% ready for SEA Games hosting

HOUSE SPEAKER Alan Peter S. Cayetano, who also chairs the Philippine Southeast Asian Games Organizing Committee (PHISGOC), said the country is 100% ready for the 30th Southeast Asian Games in November, though he admitted that the daily hosting of the event will be a challenge. “Overall, we are 100% ready. Now ang challenges natin ay ‘yung (are the) day-to-day. Remember, you’ll have more than 20,000 people, you’ll have 56 sports and around 500 events, so handling all of these, the traffic, ‘yung food, ‘yung pangangailangan ng mga (needs of the) athletes, angal ng mga (complaints of) coaches, tapos may mga (and there would be) royalty and head of states… so it’s really the 11 days,” said Mr. Cayetano during Wednesday’s site visit at New Clark City in Capas, Tarlac, one of the venues for the SEA Games. “Having said that, rehearse nang rehearse, meet nang meet,” he added. Meanwhile, Central Luzon Police Chief Brig. Gen. Joel Napoleon Coronel said the Philippine National Police will deploy 9,250 personnel in all the event venues. “We will be augmented by personnel coming from the Armed Forces of the Philippines, from the Bureau of Fire Protection, DoH (Department of Health), and local government responders unit. As early as Nov. 21 we will be already in full deployment,” Mr. Coronel told reporters. — Vince Angelo C. Ferreras