“Our mission is to keep everybody safe. Handa na po kami,” Balajadia said on his firm statement.
Senate Sergeant-At-Arms Ret. Maj. Gen. Jose Balajadia Jr. said in a press briefing Thursday they are expecting rallyists from anti and pro-Corona camps during the trial, which will start on January 16.
He said bomb-sniffing dogs from the Philippine Air Force will also be in the vicinity while CCTV cameras will be installed in strategic locations.
Additional police units will be deployed, apart from the Senate personnel usually guarding the premises, said Senate Security Enforcement Service Director Manuel Parlade.
“About 40 anti-riot policemen will be posted near the Film Center of the Philippines to defuse possible demonstrations,” Parlade said.
But despite threats in the metro, Balajadia said there have been no threats with regards to the upcoming trial.
Trial open to ‘limited’ public
Meanwhile, Senate Secretary Emma Reyes announced that the Senate can only accommodate 175 guests from the general public to witness the trial due to the limited space of the plenary hall.
The Office of the Senate Sergeant-At-Arms will issue 150 passes to the public and 25 passes to senior citizens daily on a first-come, first-served basis starting Jan. 16 at 11 a.m. at the covered walk in the Senate grounds. Only one pass will be issued for each guest.
Senate Security Support Service Director Anthony Samonte noted that dress code will be strictly enforced to those who wish to watch the proceedings.
“Guests wearing sleeveless shirts and slippers will not be allowed inside the hall. The public is encouraged to wear shirts or blouses with collars to be able to enter the plenary hall. Propaganda shirts, pins, IDs or other propaganda paraphernalia will strictly not be allowed inside the building,” Samonte said.
"Guests will also be restricted to designated areas and will not be allowed to roam around. Those in the plenary hall will also not be allowed to take pictures or videos of the proceedings so as not to disrupt the trial. All cellular phones, beepers or other communication devices must be turned off once the guests enter the plenary hall," he added.
Orderly media coverage
As for the trial’s media coverage, only accredited reporters with impeachment IDs will be allowed inside the Senate building during the trial. No media reporting or interviews will be allowed inside the plenary hall and on the second floor hallway so as not to disrupt the proceedings.
The Senate Public Relations Information Bureau, together with the five pooled TV networks, will provide audio-video live feed of the trial. The live webcast of the plenary session will be available at Senate's official website senate.gov.ph.
Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile, presiding officer of the impeachment trial, has instructed Senate personnel to see to it that measures are adopted to ensure that the media coverage would not get in the way of the conduct of an orderly, open and transparent impeachment trial.
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