A total of 2,949 personnel of the Philippine National Police (PNP) and other law enforcement agencies will secure the 44th MassKara Festival, which will run for 17 days starting with a countdown at the Bacolod City Government Center grounds on Friday night.

The troops and resources were deployed during a send-off ceremony led by Col. Noel Aliño, director of the Bacolod City Police Office (BCPO), at their headquarters here Thursday afternoon.

“We now have skeletal deployment in the festival sites. We will be on maximum duty during the highlights, the final week up to Oct. 22,” said Aliño, who is also the commander of the MassKara 2023 Site Task Group.

This year, seven major festival sites have been identified: the Bacolod Public Plaza, Bacolod City Government Center, Megaworld’s The Upper East, SM City Bacolod, Old Airport, Lacson Tourism Strip, and Paglaum Sports Complex.

The security forces include 941 personnel of the BCPO and 1,041 augmentation troops of the Police Regional Office 6 (Western Visayas).

The rest are from Philippine National Police support units, Bureau of Fire Protection, Bureau of Jail Management and Penology, Philippine Army, Philippine Coast Guard, and Philippine Army, as well as personnel of the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office and various force multiplier groups.

Aliño appealed to Bacolodnons for cooperation to ensure a peaceful staging of this year’s MassKara Festival.

In a statement, Katherine Matiling, president of the Bacolod Yuhum Foundation, organizer of the MassKara Festival, said all preparations, particularly the security plans, have been finalized during the last inter-agency meeting on Wednesday.

“Everything is in place for the festival kick-off,” she added.

Earlier, Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez said President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. and First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos will be the guests of honor during the highlights of the MassKara Festival.

“So far, the President is confirmed to come on the last weekend,” he added. (PNA)