GMA booing a ‘minor incident,’ says PSG

Presidential Security Group (PSG) chief Col. Romeo Prestoza yesterday downplayed the booing of President Arroyo at a concert recently, saying it was a minor incident and that his men — and even the Chief Executive — no longer pay much attention to such heckling.

Nevertheless, Prestoza said the booing was uncalled for and he asked the President’s critics to respect Mrs. Arroyo’s office, especially during such occasions.

"It was just tolerated by my men because those who reacted when the President arrived and left did not actually say ‘boo’ but ‘hmmm.’ If they did more than that, we could have asked them to leave because they should not create a scene detrimental to the ongoing activity," Prestoza said in an interview.

"The security officers did not see any intention to really embarrass or harm the President at that time, so there was no need to put them away. These people could have been approached if they were persistent," he said, adding that "we cannot just grab them."

Prestoza said Mrs. Arroyo was invited to watch the Il Divo concert at the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC) in Pasay City on Saturday night by the event’s organizers and that it was unfortunate that the incident happened.

"I think there is no reason to blow things out of proportion," he added. "There was no lapse on the part of the security officers or the organizers because they could have acted accordingly if the President was placed in a really bad situation."