THE Davao City Police Office (DCPO) is ready to enforce the coding scheme in the city starting Saturday, April 18, as part of the initiative to contain the spread of the virus.
In an interview with DCPO director Police Colonel Kirby John Kraft Friday, April 17, he said the public must show that their Food and Medicine (FM) passes correspond to their designated schedule to leave from their residences.
“Expect [na] mas mahigpit na inspection sa control points including people on the streets will be required to present FM pass or ID for those authorized persons outside of residence,” Kraft said.
In this coding scheme, those FM passes with control numbers starting with numbers 1, 3, 5, 7, and 9 are only allowed to go out on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays while those control numbers starting with even numbers 0, 2, 4, 6, and 8 are only allowed to go out on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.
No passes will be allowed to use on Sunday.
DCPO spokesperson Police Captain Rose Aguilar said that they are supposed to implement the scheme on Friday but due to low awareness and of the public, they decided to move it today.
All joint Task Force (JTF) checkpoint and Quarantine Control Point have been directed to implement the number coding scheme on the use of FM pass.
Personnel manning the checkpoint are advised to inform all citizens with FM pass on the scheduled days using the number coding.
Kraft said that violators, “will be apprehended and charges will be filed for disobedience and violation of Bayanihan Act.”
Under Executive Order (EO) 23-A, FM passes shall only be used to buy food, medicines or go to the hospital. Two individuals can be named on the pass but only one named person can use it at any given time. In case of emergency, the pass is not needed.
The usage of FM pass is only valid from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.
In a radio interview, Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio said that stricter measures will be implemented in the city with the extension of the enhanced community quarantine after citing some violators of the quarantine.
Through this initiative, it will limit the number of people who are going outside their residences as the health department continues to remind the public to stay indoors to prevent the spread of the virus. JCR