FOUR mayors in northern Negros Occidental have expressed support for the new classification of the National Inter-Agency Task Force (NIATF) putting the province under modified general community quarantine (MGCQ).
Cadiz City Mayor Salvador Escalante said he along with Mayors Manuel Escalante of Manapla, Alfredo Marañon III of Sagay City and Melecio Yap, Jr. of Escalante City have channeled their opposition to Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson on Tuesday, May 12, after the IATF removed the quarantine over the province.
We actually panicked, he said.
“We here in northern Negros receive the bulk of the cargo from Cebu through the Danao Port,” Escalante pointed out.
He said their concern is if the quarantine is down, everything is open.
We still wanted to implement measures to secure our local government units, the mayor added.
In Cadiz City, there will be no more checkpoints if you enter the city but trucks coming from Cebu are not allowed to enter, he said.
We have designated a barangay hall outside of the city proper as their holding area where they can sleep and bath if they want as well as park their trucks, he added.
“We have received reports that some of these trucks smuggle passengers and drop them somewhere,” Escalante said.
He also said that the Cadiz Port is closed for passengers but still open for cargo, fishing boats, molasses tankers and coal from Semirara island in Antique.
Trips to Bantayan island in Cebu and to Estancia town in Iloilo are suspended, he said.
“However, crews are not allowed to go ashore. Their needs will be delivered to the ships,” Escalante said. (TDE)