CAGAYAN de Or City Councilor Teodulfo Lao Jr. urged Mayor Oscar Moreno to spearhead the drafting of the city’s own rules and regulations on the implementation of martial law, aside from awaiting the guidelines from the National Government.
He said the mayor should issue an executive order regarding the local guidelines just like what other cities have done.
“Sa ako, ilocalize dapat ang guidelines kay kabalo man ta unsay best for our city kung unsa ang ginadili, atong angay iprohibit aron malikay ang mga tao sa unsa man ang mga kasamok (For me, we should localize the guidelines since we know what’s best and prohibited in our city),” he said.
“We cannot just sit this one out. If we want our city to be safe, we have to ensure everything is in place, by all means,” Lao said.
“Supposedly, duna untay executive order na siya kay temporary in nature raman na, 60 days raman, siguro wala paman kaabot ang mayor kay toa paman sa Bangkok, Thailand mao ng wala pay executive order para nato (there should have been an executive order but the mayor is in Bangkok, Thailand, maybe that’s why we don’t have it yet),” he added.
Moreno was in Thailand for a forum on resilience and climate change initiated by the United States Agency for International Development. He arrived Friday, May 26.
Lao said for a highly-urbanized city, the city should adapt an 11 p.m. to 4 a.m. curfew.
“Or maybe we can implement a selective curfew, kung pwede mag una ang (if we can first have the) curfew sa (in) hinterland barangays things like that. We need to do this,” he said.
But for City Councilor Romeo Calizo, chairman of the police, fire, and public safety said there is still no order from the mayor to make such guidelines.
He said it is best to wait for the national guidelines to avoid being presumptuous.
“No order from the mayor yet that we make local guidelines, but I think kung ako pud si (I were the) mayor, I have to be very cautious about it kay (because its) martial law baya na, it's very much different,” he said.
“Wala man ta fear nga mag-declare own guidelines, ang pirmi lang gikahadlokan sa tao is ang possible abuse, pero dili man na kay (We don’t fear having own guidelines, what people feared is the possible abuse) martial law is intended for the terrorists,” he added.
City Hall spokesperson Maricel Casino-Rivera advised the public to be cautious, be vigilant, and to go home early “unless one has an important errant to make especially at night time.”
Meanwhile, Cagayan de Oro Police Office (Cocpo) spokesperson Mardy Hortillosa also said they are still waiting for guidelines, either local or national.
“Now we are focuse on the security measures of the city, ang Oplan Bakal sita ug (and the) checkpoint, more strict now but political and civil rights are still there,” he added.
Hortillosa said the
declaration of martial law in Mindanao by President Rodrgo Duterte on Teusday, May 23, is different from former President Ferdinand Marcos’ declaration.
“Ang ato lang nga makontrol nato ang musulod diri sa atong area nga posibleng mokatag ug mga daotang binuhatan (For our part, we want to control those who goes in and out of the city to avoid bad deeds),” Hortillosa said.