TO stop the surge in new Covid-19 cases, the government imposed a two-week “bubble” movement restriction in Metro Manila and its surrounding areas.
In Resolution No. 104, the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) banned non-essential travel going to and from the National Capital Region (NCR), Bulacan, Laguna, and Rizal from March 22 to April 4, 2021.
Bulacan, Laguna, and Rizal were also placed under general community quarantine (GCQ) classification, similar to that of NCR.
Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque explained only people traveling for “essential” reasons such as work or going home will be allowed to pass through the bubble.
The bubble will remain in effect from March 22 until April 4, 2021. A curfew from 10 pm to 5 am the next day will be strictly followed, but will not cover workers, cargo transport, and public transportation.
The IATF issued the latest wave of restrictions ahead of the Holy Week break, when most people tend to travel to the province. Roque sought for their understanding.
Additional restrictions
For the areas within the bubble, public transportation will be allowed to continue to operate within the current passenger capacity, but all mass gatherings, including most religious activities such as masses, will be temporarily prohibited.
Among the exempted religious activities are weddings, baptisms, and funeral services, provided that the number of participants is limited to 10 persons.
Roque stressed the new IATF resolution does not impose a “hard lockdown” as some people speculated, since most economic activity will continue.
However, he noted some establishments will be temporarily shut down for the duration of the new issuance, including, driving schools, traditional cinemas, video and interactive game arcades, libraries, archives, museums, cultural centers, limited social events at accredited establishments of the Department of Tourism (DOT), and indoor tourist attractions.
For restaurants and other food establish-ments, indoor dining will also be temporarily prohibited. Cockfighting and cockpit operations, including in areas under modified GCQ (MGCQ), are also banned for the period.
Stay at home
People aged below 18 and above 65 as well as those with immunodeficiency, comorbidity and pregnant women are required to stay home at all times.
They will only be exempted from the restrictions if they are obtaining essential good and services, or for work. Those above 65 years old as well as persons with disability will be allowed to go outdoors if they will engage in exercises or therapy, respectively.
The IATF also urged the public to stop accepting visitors outside immediate family and to wear face masks even at home.
The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), and local government units (LGU) were tasked to implement the provisions of IATF Resolution 104.
Emergency response
Roque said the issuance, which was already approved by President Duterte, was the result of the emergency meeting held by the IATF on Saturday in response to the recent spike in new Covid-19 cases.
“We expect these new restrictions will result into lower number of Covid-19 [cases] and we also hope it will stop the spread of its new variants in other areas of the country,” Roque said in an online press briefing on Sunday.
IATF made the policy after the number of new Covid-19 cases per day rose from 4,000 earlier this month to around 8,000 last Saturday, sparking concerns infected patients may overwhelm healthcare facilities.
The policy was laid down after six hours of contentious discussions until 1 a.m. on Sunday.
During the meeting, it was reported that there were 80,642 “active Covid-19 cases” in the country as of March 20, 2021. The total number of deaths has declined, however, from a peak of 2,090 in August 2020 to 670 in February 2021 From March 1-20, 2021, there were 171 deaths from Covid-19.
“There was so much debate last night (Saturday), with one Cabinet secretary advocating to keep certain places open. There were also discussions on allowing tourism, but requiring test before travel. But even the chief medical consultant, who is usually liberal, said this might spread the virus to more provinces,” one source said.
Another source added there were also discussions on strictly requiring people at home to wear masks because of the inability of authorities to actually check and monitor compliance. “So it was agreed that masks at home will be ‘encouraged’, while visitors from outside [their personal/household bubbles] will be discouraged.”
Image credits: AP/Aaron Favila