PH counts cost, benefits of papal visit

MANILA, Philippines—When the Pope comes to town a big bill awaits the host country, but the mammoth crowds whipped up by the Roman Catholic Church leader also offer plenty of good business.

In pope-adoring Philippines, which hosted the Pontiff for a four-day visit that ended early this week, a massive logistical effort tested the resources of a country that has lagged others in East Asia in tackling corruption and extreme poverty.

The government deployed 50,000 police and troops, nearly a fourth of its security forces, to ward off any threats, keep ecstatic crowds that numbered an estimated 6 million at their peak from mobbing Pope Francis, and to prevent stampedes and crimes.

State forces are thinly spread even under normal circumstances as they deal with communist and Muslim insurgents and other threats. Officials say the bulk of the forces had to be brought into the capital from provinces. Money was spent for their accommodation, transportation, food and allowances.

Officials, however, are not yet giving a price tag.

Presidential spokesperson Herminio Coloma said on Thursday the cost to the government was not yet clear, with data from various agencies still being gathered.

A member of the central committee that organized the papal visit said government could have spent at least P200 million on security and physical arrangements, including barriers that walled off the 11-kilometer route from the air base where Pope Francis’s plane touched down to the Vatican’s diplomatic mission in Manila.

How much the church spent and collected in donations, is also unknown.

But for business, there were winners and losers. Hotels, restaurants and souvenir vendors did brisk trade. But the outsourcing, semiconductor and finance industries were among the losers.

Hans Sicat, president of the Philippine Stock Exchange complained about the declaration of three working days as holidays in metropolitan Manila, coming after the long Christmas break.

Airlines, meanwhile, had to cancel dozens of flights because Manila’s airspace was declared a “no-fly zone” hours before the arrival and departure of Pope Francis’ aircraft. But Transportation Secretary Jose Emilio Abaya said he did not expect substantial losses because flights are rebooked anyway.

Hotels on the fringe of Manila Bay, near most of the papal visit venues, were almost all fully booked even if they charged higher rates. AP