The Bacolod City Health Office (CHO) is not in favor of amending the curfew ordinance from 10 p.m. to 4 a.m. to 12 midnight to 4 a.m.
Councilor Archie Baribar, who authored the curfew ordinance, said that during the public hearing at the Sangguniang Panlungsod Monday, July 6, 2020, Doctor Ma. Luz Ma-Apni said that they will only give a go signal for the amendment of the curfew ordinance if there will be low cases of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19), an operational molecular biology laboratory, regulation of the locally stranded individuals and enough quarantine facilities for the LSI in the city.
"The CHO is not sold out to have an extension of the curfew while other participants are in favor to amend the ordinance but, ultimately, we will have to balance everything," he said.
Also present in the public hearing were representatives from the Bacolod City Police Office (BCPO), Department of Trade and Industry, and City Legal Office.
Frank Carbon, chief executive officer of Metro Bacolod Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MBCCI), earlier asked the City Council to amend the curfew ordinance of the city to help the business sector further stir the economy.
The business sector is proposing to amend the curfew ordinance from 10 p.m. to 4 a.m. to 12 midnight to 4 a.m.
On their position paper, it states that amending the curfew ordinance to allow more night business hours will not only increase the revenue of the businesses and preserve and create new jobs but will also generate much-needed cash/taxes for the city.
“We will consider the request of the businessmen because we are in a situation where we have to survive health-wise, but at the same time we have to survive economically,” Baribar said.
He said he will hold a committee conference this week with the representative of the City Mayor’s Office, the local Inter-Agency Task Force against Covid-19, Permits and Licensing Division, City Treasurer’s Office, and Liga ng mga Barangay.
He added he will make a committee report this week to be submitted to the City Council so they can decide whether to amend it or not.
For his part, Crispin Chua, director of MBCCI, said they are requesting the amendment of the curfew ordinance to allow more night business hours, to give enough time to clean their stores and for their employees to go home.
“The two hours extension is a big help to our businessmen to survive because for now some business establishments were already closed because of the pandemic,” he said.
Police Lieutenant Colonel Levy Pangue, BCPO deputy city director for administration, said there will be no problem on their side if the City Government will amend the curfew ordinance.
“If there will be an amendment on the curfew ordinance, the police will adjust and we will strictly implement the ordinance,” he said.
He said currently, BCPO has a total of 4,354 violators of the curfew ordinance who were arrested from March to July 2. The violators were arrested by operatives of Police Stations 1 to 10, Mobile Patrol Group and Bacolod City Mobile Force Company.
The City Council earlier approved an ordinance requiring mandatory observance of a "non-social period" or a curfew in all public places in Bacolod City during the emergency caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Baribar said that part of the preventive measures against Covid-19 is the observance of 10 p.m. to 4 a.m. every day as a non-social period for everyone in all public places.
The ordinance states that all residents of Bacolod City from 10 p.m. to 4 a.m. every day during the duration of the emergency are prohibited in all public places in Bacolod City.