MANILA – Bacolod City reverts to general community quarantine (GCQ) today until Sept. 15 while Iloilo City returns to modified GCQ.
In a public address last night, President Rodrigo Duterte approved the recommendation of the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Disease for the quarantine status adjustment of the two highly-urbanized cities.
During a briefing, National Task Force against COVID-19 chief implementer Carlito Galvez attributed the increase in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases in Bacolod City to the return of locally stranded individuals and overseas Filipino workers.
“Mayor Bing (Leonardia) wrote us regarding their COVID-19 situation kaya tayo ay nakapagpadala na ng remdisivir and PPE (personal protective equipment),” Galvez said.
Leonardia is expected to release his latest directive containing general GCQ guidelines today.
Iloilo City’s Mayor “Jerry” Treñas, on the other hand, already released an executive order on what to be imposed in the city following the IATF-EID recommendation to shift the back to MGCQ.
According to Treñas, the following are to be imposed:
* gradual lifting of curfew
* restaurants can now operate up to 75 percent of its capacity
* gyms and spas may operate but up to 50 percent of their capacity only
* church Masses allowed but up to 50 percent capacity only
* movie houses may reopen
Iloilo province, Negros Occidental, Aklan, Capiz, Antique, and Guimaras remain under MGCQ for the first part of September.
Meanwhile, the country’s COVID-19 task force has proposed that President Duterte extend the duration of a community quarantine from two weeks to one month, according to Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez.
“Ang pinaka-benefit nito, of course, mas may stability sa ating pagkilos, sa reopening of economy. Hindi po pabago-bago, may kaunting stability,” Lopez said in a media briefing on Monday.
Lopez added that this is the ideal direction to take if the government wants to shift to the “new normal” or no community quarantine but with the strict enforcement of minimum health standards such as wearing of face masks and physical distancing.
The President usually announces the quarantine status of certain areas, placing them under varying degrees of lockdown restrictions for 14 days. The two week-duration gives the government the option to adjust measures according to the constantly changing case doubling time and critical care capacity for COVID-19 patients.
Lopez further said that gyms, tutorial centers and businesses offering grooming services outside salons and barbershops are now allowed to resume operations starting today.
“By tomorrow, yung na-defer po natin na sector na hindi natin nabuksan dahil nag-GCQ tayo, ‘yung ibang sektor kagaya ng personal grooming services, tutorial and review centers, ang mga gyms itutuloy na sa pagbukas starting tomorrow, Sept. 1,” Lopez said.
The Philippines had been under varying degrees of community quarantine for 170 days now, the longest lockdown in the world./PN