The Philippine National Police on Monday said it has yet to detect security threats for the Feast of the Black Nazarene on 9 January next year but will have stringent monitoring schemes following the Mindanao State University-Marawi bombing.

PNP spokesperson and information chief Col. Jean Fajardo said that so far they have not monitored any serious threat during the holiday season and even in the preparation for the Traslacion as they will be more stringent in their surveillance works.

Fajardo said Manila Police District Director Col. Arnold Thomas Ibay continues to conduct simulation exercises, communication exercises, walk through the Traslacion, starting at the Quirino Grandstand in Rizal Park and up to the Minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene or Quiapo Church in Quezon Boulevard.

"We continue to prepare for the Traslacion and in fact our DD (district director) is going around doing inspections on the procession routes and yesterday I was talking to him even though we are focused on the holiday season we are starting withour simulation and communication exercises to make sure that the Traslacion will be safe especially after what happened at MSU. We are also watching and will deploy our K9 dogs especially around the church in Quiapo and in all the procession routes," Fajardo said.

The procession will start from the Quirino Grandstand, turn left to Katigbak Street; pass through Padre Burgos Street; and along Finance Road, and Palanca, Arlegui, Fraternal, Vergara, Duque de Alba, Castillejos, Farnecio, Nepomuceno, Concepcion Aguila, Carcer, Hidalgo, Bilibid Viejo, Gil Puyat, and J.P De Guzman Streets; under the Quezon Bridge; and Villalobos Street en route to Plaza Miranda right outside the church.

It would mark the first time the Traslacion will return to its old format after the celebration was suspended from 2021 to 2023 because of the Covid-19 pandemic.

This year, Quiapo Church held a "Walk of Faith" sans the Traslacion and lured 1.2 million devotees over two days.

The last procession in 2020 had about three million participants joining the shorter Traslacion route that lasted 16 hours.

In 2018 and 2019, the police estimated an average crowd of four million, both lasting for nearly 24 hours.