ABS-CBN security chief blames ‘unruly’ crowd

The security chief of television network ABS-CBN yesterday blamed unruly crowds for Saturday’s stampede at the Philsports Arena (formerly Ultra) in Pasig City that left 74 people dead and more than 600 others injured.

"People started pushing and shoving one another, that’s why the steel barrier gave way that eventually led to the stampede," Rene Luspo told the fact-finding panel of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) headed by Undersecretary Marius Corpus.

Luspo and other ABS-CBN executives, as well as "Wowowee" game show host Willie Revillame, were summoned for questioning by the panel, created by the DILG on orders of President Arroyo.

The show’s production and security staff were also asked to appear before the body, which sought to determine whether gross negligence caused the tragedy, Presidential Spokesman Ignacio Bunye said.

It was not clear whether the panel will recommend criminal liabilities in the wake of the incident. But Transportation and Communications Secretary Leandro Mendoza said the probe would determine any "possible culpability" by the show’s organizers and producers.

The fact-finding panel has not set any more hearings as it will first assess the statements of the witnesses who have testified. It will submit its findings and recommendations to the Department of Justice to determine the culpability of those involved in the incident.

A police official from the National Capital Regional Police Office (NCRPO), who asked not to be named, said investigators are "looking into the organizers’ preparations and if they fully complied with them and whether they secured a permit from the local government unit and the local police."

The official said it is too early to say that ABS-CBN was to blame for the tragedy.

‘Too early’

NCRPO chief Director Vidal Querol said the DILG panel’s initial findings "showed that there is only one gate to accommodate the thousands of people who expressed a desire to join and watch the show."

He said ABS-CBN organizers had fielded 160 security guards to man the area and erected steel barriers near the gates.

At least 100 uniformed policemen were deployed to control the flow of traffic and arrest petty criminals.

"We had no participation in the maintenance of the gates," Querol said.

Up to 25,000 people, mostly from urban communities, had gathered for days at the Philsports Arena where Revillame had planned to hand out major prizes for the taping of the show’s anniversary edition Saturday.

"Wowowee" offered minibuses, houses, and a top cash prize of P1 million to the first 300 people to enter the venue.

A stampede broke out when a steel barrier was suddenly opened, leading to a frantic scramble for prime seats.

The crowd started "shoving and pushing each other upon learning that only a limited number of persons would be allowed entry. Yung mga tao na hindi nakapila ang nag-simulang nagtulak (Those who were not in line were the ones who started shoving)," Luspo said.

Luspo’s statement was corroborated by Marlou Almaden, ABS-CBN business unit head, who said "we pleaded to the people to move back but they kept on moving forward and forward.

"Most of them were women complaining that they were being pushed. We had been pleading the night before but they didn’t listen," Almaden said. "The crowd was becoming rowdy so we asked for security (to be beefed up starting) 12 midnight."

Despite this, Almaden said at around 4 a.m., the crowd started to thicken and organizers planned to open one of the gates to decongest the area. Though there was an area relatively free of people, many "insisted on staying in the congested area," she added.

Almaden was trapped at the ticketing distribution area near the St. Martin street entrance.

There are two gates: one at St. Martin street for people who were to be accommodated at the covered gymnasium, the show’s actual venue, while those going through the Capt. Javier Street entrance would watch the show on a big television screen at the open field beside the gym.

Luspo, who has been the network’s security chief since July 2005, said he was with 77 guards at the St. Martin entrance because he thought it was weaker, security-wise. Only 23 guards were deployed to man the Capt. Javier street entrance, where a larger crowd had converged.

Luspo said the bleachers on the open field could accommodate 8,000 people, a smaller bleacher could take another 2,000, and the covered gym could hold 9,000.

He said the network had completed adequate security preparations weeks prior to the game show’s anniversary last Feb. 4.

Luspo said he did not deploy extra security guards outside the barrier, where the stampede took place. He said there were 107 security guards, including him, manning the area occupied by "Wowowee" audiences.

"We (ABS-CBN security group and Philsports Arena management) talked about the security. Ultra would take care of entrances and inside the compound while ABS-CBN (would be in charge of) crowd control outside the compound," he said.

Luspo said the Philsports Arena’s security personnel were tasked with checking bags and frisking those entering the arena for explosives and other deadly implements.

When asked if he considered the possibility of a riot, he answered in the affirmative, but pointed out that "we don’t make plans (for a possible riot), we recognize the police. The police are always there to help us."

Eastern Police District (EPD) director Chief Superintendent Oscar Valenzuela, another member of the fact-finding panel, asked Luspo if a guard was in charge of the area where the stampede occurred. Luspo said there was, but did not give his name.

Valenzuela said they had no evidence to back up reports that somebody had shouted about the presence of a bomb, which may have triggered the stampede.

"We interviewed at least 50 survivors and took statements of 10 witnesses, but the (bomb) angle failed to come up," he said.

Pasig City Police chief Senior Superintendent Raul Medina said he had deployed policemen as early as Friday night to ensure that there would be no pickpockets or other petty criminals at the site.

Medina added he initially deployed 83 policemen, along with 50 District Mobile Group personnel, 25 traffic enforcers, 20 barangay tanods, and mobile barangay personnel.

ABS-CBN’s counsel Reggie Puno said during yesterday’s hearing that neither ABS-CBN executive vice president Charo Santos-Concio nor Revillame could shed light on the stampede.

Revillame just "gets on the stage to host the show and games," Puno said.

Corpus vowed to meet the 72-hour deadline given by the President, who confirmed the creation of task force initially created by DILG Secretary Angelo Reyes.

Reyes assured that the task force would not be "pressured" by the fact that ABS-CBN is a large network with some measure of "influence."

"No one is above the law, if they have (a) violation they have to face it," Corpus said.

Prior to the hearing, Corpus and other members of the fact-finding team — representatives from the Department of Health, the Bureau of Fire protection, National Telecommunications Commission, Metro Manila police Office of Civil Defense and the National Bureau of Investigation — conducted an ocular inspection of the arena.

In an interview, Corpus and another member of the panel, Franklin Castillo of the Office of the Civil Defense, said what triggered the stampede was the announcement that only a certain number of people would be allowed entry.

Querol said organizers should have allocated more entry points to the venue to ease the crowd pressure.

"Many of those in the crowd came from far-flung areas. They had not slept nor eaten properly so tension built up. They became restless, and they just exploded," he said in Filipino.

Querol recommended that for large gatherings that are organized in the future, show organizers and the police should sit down and discuss security preparations based on the number of people expected to attend the event.

Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said "we had a situation where people were already upset because they were tired, lacked food and (were) exposed to pollution while encamped on sidewalks. Many of those who died were elderly women who were already weak because they’d been waiting in line for three days."

Help promised

ABS-CBN, in a statement, said the network is extending assistance to the families of those killed or injured in the stampede. The network designated Bantay Bata 163 to assist those whose family members were injured and those still missing.

The network has deployed 12 teams of social workers from the ABS-CBN foundation, as well as volunteers from St. Paul University, to visit the families of those who died to assist them in taking care of the wake and burial arrangements.

There is also a team going around hospitals and funeral parlors to compile information logistics and to address the needs of the victims’ families.

As of 12 noon yesterday, ABS-CBN said a total of 74 people were dead and 408 injured in the stampede. There were 184 people who had been reunited with their respective families.

The casualties were brought to Arlington Funeral Homes in Pasig and Quezon City, and Loyola Memorial Chapels in Guadalupe, Makati City. Five bodies were still unidentified at Arlington in Pasig City, while Loyola still had one unidentified body and five more unclaimed.

ABS-CBN is also providing continued medical treatment to those who were injured and suffered minor trauma.

Starting tomorrow, "Wowowee" will devote a week-long program to public service and running news about the tragedy. Revilla will take a one-week leave from the program to visit the families of those killed or injured in the stampede.

Passersby laid flowers and lit candles on the road where a day earlier corpses had lain side-by-side amid a litter of personal debris. Some onlookers silently prayed as janitors hosed down the area with water. — With Non Alquitran, Ben Serrano, AP, AFP