Metro Manila, Cebu City, Laguna under modified ECQ until May 31

METRO Manila, Cebu City and Laguna province will continue to be under an enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) until May 31, but the guidelines will be modified to allow some industries to resume operations at a limited capacity.

“Hinay-hinay, dahan-dahan, unti-unti po ang ating pagbukas,” Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said in a virtual press conference Tuesday noon, May 12.

The modified ECQ will take effect on May 16, after the current ECQ ends on May 15. Roque said the list of industries that will be allowed to reopen gradually was being finalized and will be announced Wednesday, May 13, at the latest.

Restrictions will gradually be eased, meanwhile, in eight regions with moderate risk of coronavirus infection while the community quarantine will be lifted, except for minimum health standards, in eight other regions with low risk of infection.

These are contained in Resolution No. 35 of the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases, which was approved Monday, May 11, Roque said.

Local government units have until May 13 to appeal their classification before the IATF screening and validation committee with the concurrence of the task force’s regional counterpart.

Under a modified ECQ, some people will be allowed limited movement for work and supply run, selected manufacturing and processing plants will be allowed to operate with up to 50 percent of their workforce, limited transport services will be allowed for essential goods and services, but physical classes in all levels are still suspended.

Roque said the task force considered the suggestions of mayors in Metro Manila, or National Capital Region.

The mayors said there should only be one classification for all 16 highly urbanized cities and the town of Pateros in Metro Manila.

They also said LGUs should be allowed to place certain barangays under lockdown, when necessary.

Metro Manila is divided into four zones: critical zone, or areas with more than 20 cases for every 100,000; containment zone, areas surrounding the critical zones; buffer zone; and outside of buffer zone.

Critical and containment zones will continue to be under ECQ. The industries that will be allowed to reopen gradually are those located in buffer and outside of buffer zones, Roque said.

Placed under general community quarantine (GCQ) from May 16 to May 31, 2020 are the following:

• Calabarzon or Region 4-A (Cavite, Quezon, Rizal, Batangas and Lucena City);
• Central Visayas (Cebu except Cebu City, Bohol, Negros Oriental, Siquijor, Mandaue City and Lapu-Lapu City);
• Cordillera Autonomous Region (Abra, Apayao, Benguet, Ifugao, Kalinga, Mountain Province and Baguio City);
• Cagayan Valley or Region 2 (Batanes, Cagayan, Isabela, Nueva Vizcaya, Quirino and Santiago City);
• Central Luzon (Aurora, Bataan, Bulacan, Nueva Ecija, Pampanga, Tarlac, Zambales, Angeles City and Olongapo City);
• Zamboanga Peninsula (Zamboanga del Norte, Zamboanga del Sur, Zamboanga Sibugay, Zamboanga City and Isabela City);
• Davao (Davao City, Davao de Oro, Davao del Norte, Davao del Sur, Davao Occidental and Davao Oriental); and
• Caraga (Agusan del Norte, Agusan del Sur, Dinagat Islands, Surigao del Norte, Surigao del Sur and Butuan City).

• Ilocos Region (Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, La Union, Pangasinan, Dagupan City);
• Mimaropa or Region 4-B (Marinduque, Occidental and Oriental Mindoro, Romblon, Palawan, Puerto Princesa City);
• Bicol Region (Albay, Camarines Norte, Camarines Sur, Catanduanes, Masbate, Sorsogon, Legazpi City and Naga City).
• Western Visayas (Aklan, Antique, Capiz, Guimaras, Iloilo, Negros Occidental, Iloilo City and Bacolod City);
• Eastern Visayas (Biliran, Eastern Samar, Leyte, Northern Samar, Western Samar, Southern Leyte, Ormoc City and Tacloban City).
• Northern Mindanao (Bukidnon, Camiguin, Lanao del Norte, Misamis Occidental and Oriental, and Cagayan de Oro City);
• Soccsksargen (North Cotabato, South Cotabato, Sarangani, Sultan Kudarat and General Santos City); and
• Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (Basilan, Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao, Sulu, Tawi-Tawi and Cotabato City).