By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga

With the MassKara Festival beginning Sunday evening, Bacolod City Police Office (BCPO) acting director, Police Senior Superintendent Jack Wanky, said they will deploy over 1,000 police officers, with other agencies offering additional law enforcement agents, during the event.
The police chief noted, around 600 police officers will augment the city force, with about 200 from the Negros Occidental Police Provincial Office (NOPPO) and another 400 from Police Regional Office-6 (PRO-6).
50 soldiers from the Philippine Army and another 700 barangay tanods will also reinforce the police presence in the city.
In addition, while glass bottles and barbecue sticks continue to be disallowed from inside festival sites, along with the ban of firearms once a gun ban is declared by the Philippine National Police (PNP), the backpack ban has been withdrawn.
Wanky said police will conduct thorough inspections.
The Bacolod Traffic Authority Office (BTAO) also announced the road from the old City Hall to the Diamond Jubilee Tower at the Bacolod Public Plaza, along Araneta Street, would be closed to traffic by 1:00 p.m. on Sunday./WDJ