Iglesia event causes road closure, minor accidents in Quezon City

WHEN WORSHIP TAKES SPACE Neatly arranged chairs await worshippers and close a section of Commonwealth Avenue in Quezon City on Friday for the Lingap Pamamahayag evangelical mission of the influential Iglesia ni Cristo, which is currently building a church in the area. RICHARD A. REYES

The Iglesia ni Cristo (INC) event on Friday effected a road closure in Quezon City, resulting in minor vehicular accidents along Commonwealth Avenue late on Friday. A portion of the Fairview-bound side of Commonwealth, from Sandiganbayan to Litex road, was closed to traffic for the INC’s Lingap Pamamahayag event. Like previous events held in Metro Manila, this was held at a public space and caused diversion for traffic.

As a result of the road closure, part of the opposite lane was used for counterflow traffic. Quezon City Hall’s public order and safety chief Elmo San Diego said at least four minor accidents had been reported on Commonwealth, particularly where the bottleneck had formed, with vehicles “sideswiping each other because they won’t give way.”

Superintendent Ely Pintang, head of the Quezon City Police District’s Traffic Enforcement Unit, said traffic flow for the rest of Commonwealth was moving smoothly. Pintang estimated the crowd to be at 150,000 as of early Friday night. The INC held the activity in front of a new church, which is still under construction on Commonwealth.

With report by Julie M Aurelio