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To say farewell to Cory, Filipinos displayed discipline and order


Hundreds of thousands of mourners filled the streets leading to the Manila Memorial Park for the funeral procession of former President Corazon Aquino. - Photos by Kokoy Severino
The wake and funeral of former President Corazon Aquino could have been chaotic, with throngs of people eager to pay their last respects. It could have been a circus too, with media scrambling to get the best video, quotes, and photographs to cover the historic chain of events. Instead, many thought that Cory Aquino’s wake and funeral were surprisingly well-organized and orderly, with thousands of mourners patiently lining up in queues that snaked hundreds of meters around the two wake venues. Mrs. Aquino, 76, died on Aug. 1 after a long battle with colon cancer. After a five-day wake that saw the nation wrapped in grief and adulation, she was buried at the Manila Memorial Park in Paranaque City beside her husband, Sen. Benigno Aquino Jr. Head coordinator Rafael Lopa told GMANews.TV that ensuring the orderliness of his aunt’s wake was “difficult because the family had very little time to prepare." He said they would not have been able to pull it off had the public refused to follow rules. “A large part (of the success) was how the people cooperated in this thing," he said, adding that he was “overwhelmed" when he saw the mourners standing in long queues despite the stormy weather. He said the family knew that a large number of people would come and visit, and instructed him to make it a “people’s funeral" while ensuring the event’s solemnity. Thus, they had to devise a system to accommodate everyone. “That’s why we formed committees," Lopa said. Inside and outside La Salle Greenhills, the Manila Cathedral and the Manila Memorial Park, there were committees for crowd control, reception, media, masses, and security. The family, committee members, and the media were issued IDs for easy recognition. The exit and entry points for the people who wanted to see Mrs. Aquino were also identified, and the police were strategically deployed to ensure public safety. Mrs. Aquino’s children were hands-on
FOR TITA CORY. Police estimated a crowd of 7,000 lined up for a chance to get a last glimpse at former President Aquino. - Kim Tan
Lopa said Mrs. Aquino’s children were hands-on in the preparations. He said he always consulted them and made decisions from their directions before carrying out any action. Lopa explained that the family originally planned to bring Mrs. Aquino’s remains straight to the Manila Cathedral, and had not intended two venues for the wake. But her death fell on a Saturday, and they did not want to interrupt regular church activities during weekends, so they had to initially bring her remains to the La Salle Greenhills gymnasium. They also did not want to disrupt classes in La Salle, so they transferred her remains to the Manila Cathedral at midday on Monday, August 3. To the very last, Mrs. Aquino’s children thought of ways to accommodate the people who wanted to bid their mother goodbye but couldn’t go to La Salle or to the Manila Cathedral, Lopa said. He said that was the main reason why they chose to use a flatbed truck instead of an ordinary hearse. “We were anticipating the people who want to see her to pay their last respect. Hindi siya makikita kung sa ordinary hearse lang (they will not see her if we used an ordinary hearse)," Lopa said. For convoys, he said, the family chose to use buses to make it easier for the police to ensure their safety. Lopa said it was the Aquino children, particularly Kris, who chose the speakers who gave eulogies and the singers for the necrological services and the Requiem Mass. He added that Kris was assisted by her close friend and TV co-host, Boy Abunda. “Whom they felt were very close to their mother were the ones who paid tributes," Lopa said referring to the eulogies during the Aug. 4 services. Media was cooperative
Family members, guests, and media people were guided by programs created by the committee in charge of the wake and funeral of former President Corazon Aquino. They were also issued yellow IDs that helped security personnel identify them.
Maria Montelibano, Mrs. Aquino’s niece and chair of the media relations committee, said she was “happy and thankful" for media cooperation in ensuring the smooth coverage of the historic event. “I am overwhelmed by everyone’s professionalism and respect. We didn’t want to turn it into a frenzy, and as much as possible, we (wanted) to keep the solemnity intact," Montelibano said. She noted that her committee had started preparing two months earlier. Montelibano added that these included the accreditation and issuance of IDs for media organizations that would cover the wake and the funeral. Montelibano likewise said she was “in awe" of GMA and ABS-CBN for agreeing to a pooled coverage of the memorial services. “When we asked for a pooled coverage, they only showed generosity," she said. A press pool refers to a group of news organizations combining their resources in the collection of news. A common broadcast feed is then distributed to members of the pool who are free to use and edit the feed as they see fit. ABS-CBN provided most of the cameras inside the cathedral, but other stations including GMA-7 were able to use the footage for their own coverage. In GMA Network’s case, that included GMAnews.TV’s ground-breaking live stream tribute page broadcast around the world through the Internet. Montelibano said she understood the minor kinks, having come from the media herself. “We all know that this was not a state funeral, and everyone responded well," Montelibano said, adding that the “few disappointments" were only limited to some reporters trying to get past their designated areas to get “scoops" or exclusive stories.
Despite the large number of mourners, police had little trouble keeping order during the wake and funeral.- Kokoy Severino
Lopa said that despite all the preparations, they still encountered problems like the number of people they could not accommodate. The National Capital Regional Police Office (NCRPO), which deployed over 700 police personnel for the funeral procession from the Manila Cathedral to the Manila Memorial Park, said about 175,000 people went to the streets last Wednesday to bid Mrs. Aquino their last farewell. NCRPO spokesperson Supt. Rommel Miranda told GMANews.TV on Wednesday that the deployment consisted of 290 police personnel from the Southern Police District, 189 members of the Manila Police District, and 200 from the NCRPO’s Regional Mobile Group. About 140 village watchmen (barangay tanod) and civilian volunteers also helped beef up security. GMANews.TV