MANILA – President Rodrigo Duterte will decide today whether to extend the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) in some parts of the country, including National Capital Region, beyond May 15.
Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said Duterte will make the verdict during the scheduled Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of the Emerging Infectious Disease (IATF-EID) this afternoon.
“Sa Lunes po magkakaron ng approval ang ating Presidente kung anong mangyayari sa atin ng May 15,” Roque said during the Laging Handa virtual press conference over the weekend.
“‘Yan po ay ibabase natin sa siyensiya titignan ang dami ng kaso ng (coronavirus disease 2019) COVID sa isang siyudad sa isang barangay at titignan natin ang kapasidad na magbigay ng critical care,” he added.
The Metro Manila Council (MMC) is set to recommend before the IATF-EID today three scenarios after the second ECQ extension—first, ECQ extension for at least 15 days, second is to move Metro Manila to GCQ and third is modified combination of an ECQ and a GCQ.
Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Undersecretary Jonathan Malaya, meanwhile, said that the IATF-EID will strong consider the recommendation of the MMC.
“Ginagalang natin ang rekomendasyon ng ating Metro Manila mayors kasi nga po katuwang natin sila sa pagpapatupad ng enhanced community quarantine,” Malaya said in an interview with DZBB.
“For example po, sa Zamboanga, dati GCQ sila. Ngunit noong nag-request ang city government na gawing ECQ, nakinig naman po ang IATF. Ganun din sa Albay, dati dinowngrade na sila sa GCQ but they requested for an extension,” he added.
The ECQ was first declared on March 17 covering the entire Luzon, to prevent the further spread of COVID-19. It has been extended in several areas, including Metro Manila, twice or until May 15./PN
