SAN JOSE, Antique – The Antique Police Provincial Office (APPO) is asking the village officials to help them enforce Ordinance Number 2020-200, which mandates the wearing of face masks in all public places as in this province as part of the preventive measures against the spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) .
APPO director Colonel Roy Parena, chair of the Antique Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases, said on May 4 that under this province’s general community quarantine (GCQ), more people are now allowed to report to work or do necessary transactions, thus, there is a need for them to wear face masks.
“The barangay captains and their other officials are being requested to help the police ensure that the people wear face masks,” he said.
The GCQ of this province began on May 1 and will last until May 15
Aside from wearing of face masks, social distancing is another effective way to suppress the spread of COVID-19.
For her part, Antique Provincial Board Member Dr. Mayella Mae Plameras-Ladislao, chair of the Committee on Health, said the “Face Mask Ordinance of the Province of Antique” is in support to the provincial IATF’s Resolution Number 03-2020 passed on April 16.
“It is a declared purpose of the ordinance as an additional measure to effectively combat the spread of COVID-19 disease by requiring the mandatory use of facemask in all public places, she said.
The ordinance, which she authored and approved on third reading, provides penalties for violators.
“People not wearing facemasks will be reprimanded for their first offense,” said Ladislao.
On the second offense, the violators will be fined P1,000 or imprisonment for three days or both at the discretion of the court, while it is P2,000 or imprisonment for 10 days or both at the discretion of the court for the third offense.(With a report from PNA/PN)
