MANDAUE City Mayor Jonas Cortes signed on Friday, March 20, 2020, Executive Order (EO) 65, which suspends the operation of big establishments, such as malls and recreational centers in the city.
He clarified that grocery stores, supermarkets, 24-hour convenience stores, pharmacies, hardware stores, banks and money remittance centers will remain open.
Ordered closed are internet cafes, video gaming arcades and similar establishments; spas, massage and beauty parlors, barber shops, facial clinics, and aesthetic centers; gambling facilities such as casinos, bingo halls, gaming terminals and the provision of gambling services such as lotteries and off-track betting; and all types of malls, including but not limited to: commercial centers, shopping marts, shopping plazas, strip malls, gallerias, commercial arcades.
Cebu's local leaders on Thursday evening have agreed to not implement a province-wide lockdown even with the discovery of the first confirmed coronavirus disease case in Mandaue City.
Following a three-hour meeting held at the Cebu Provincial Capitol, Governor Gwendolyn Garcia, the mayors of Cebu’s four major cities and Presidential Assistant for the Visayas Michael Dino agreed that instead of a lockdown, strict measures to control the movement of people must be implemented to prevent the spread of the deadly virus among the populace.
Aside from Garcia and Dino, Cebu City Mayor Edgardo Labella, Cortes, Lapu-Lapu City Mayor Junard “Ahong” Chan and Talisay City Mayor Gerald Anthony “Samsam” Gullas Jr. were present during the meeting.
READ: No lockdown, says Cebu leaders
A similar EO was signed by Labella, who ordered the temporary closure of all recreational centers in the city starting Wednesday, March 18, until the general community quarantine is lifted. Malls are also ordered closed starting Thursday. (KFD/JGS)
READ: Malls in Cebu City ordered closed