By Samuel P. Medenilla & Butch Fernandez
THE government on Friday assured work and business operations in Metro Manila will continue to be as normal as possible for the duration of a community quarantine that will be imposed beginning on Sunday.
During a news briefing in Malacañang, Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Ramon Lopez said the Metro-wide quarantine will not lead to the suspension of business operations in the National Capital Region (NCR).
“Offices, restaurants, malls and banks will remain open. Work will also continue,” Lopez said.
Likewise, the trade chief said the supply of goods, both food and non-food items, for the concerned establishments will remain unhampered since cargo trucks will be exempted from the check points that will be setup around NCR as part of its community quarantine.
By 12 a.m. of March 15, land, domestic air, and domestic sea travel to and from Metro Manila shall be suspended, as part of the government efforts to contain the rising cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) in the said region.
The community quarantine is expected to end by 11:59 of April 14. Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles, however, said the Metro Manila travel restrictions will be reviewed on a daily basis and may be lifted earlier if the situation allows it.
Quarantine exemption
ASIDE from cargo trucks, Lopez said workers will also be exempted from the travel restriction.
“All they have to do is show their IDs. That is why companies will be required to issue IDs to their employees especially those living outside of Metro Manila, or show proof of employment [so they could be exempted],” Lopez said.
He said they are also encouraging private companies to engage in flexible work arrangements, such as reduction of work hours and/or workdays; rotation of workers; and forced leaves to minimize the possible exposure of their employee from Covid-19.
With the sufficiency of necessary goods in the NCR, Nograles urged the public not to hoard food items and other essential goods during the community quarantine.
Lopez said they also intensified their monitoring the supplies of retailers and other establishments to ensure they will not engaged in hoarding of goods.
Those, which will be found to be engaged in the illegal activity will face charges from the authorities.
Sen. Risa Hontiveros, meanwhile, prodded the Duterte administration to promptly clarify the imposition of community quarantine in Metro Manila due to Covid-19, saying: “Tama na ang pagiging magulo. The people have the right to a coherent government.”
Hontiveros reminded the administration officials concerned that “the Filipino people have been expecting a cohesive plan from our leaders. They deserve and need the government to exercise competent leadership in order to shepherd us out of the Covid-19 pandemic. In addition, the government should strive to express clear communication of its policies and guidelines surrounding the containment of this pandemic.”
According to the opposition senator, “there is a lot to clarify.”
She pressed the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases to immediately release specific guidelines and parameters of the community quarantine being imposed in Metro Manila, especially its effects on the daily lives of Filipinos and of those who work within the Metro but reside elsewhere.
“Our public health and local government authorities must be at the helm of this community quarantine, subject to proper parameters and regular review, in order to guide and assure the worried public,” the senator stressed, adding: “We must not forget those who are most vulnerable and who have the least among us: the daily wage-earning poor and the loss of jobs that is already following in the wake of this pandemic.”
Hontiveros called on the Department of Social Welfare and Development and local government units to ensure sufficient food supply through local food banks. “Dapat may pagkain sa bawat hapag-kainan. Likewise, I am urging the Department of Labor and Employment to facilitate immediate cash flow to families who will lose their livelihood in the same light due to Covid-19.”
The senator affirmed that she has “full trust in the capacity of our health professionals to carry out the necessary measures to contain the virus’ transmission,” adding that she is also extending her gratitude to “our frontline health workers who have been working tirelessly in the name of public health and safety.”
“You are the real heroes and I am thankful for your service to our people. In this same line, the protection and welfare of health workers must be prioritized. They must have ample protective gear, compensation, and other forms of support in the conduct of their duties,” Hontiveros said.
She added that this pandemic is “a test of our humanity and institutions. Getting our act together means life or death to many Filipinos. A difficult path to recovery lies ahead. But I have faith in the strength of our people; that as one nation we will overcome, as we Filipinos always have.”