WHEN the whole province of Cebu is placed under a state of enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) at 12:01 a.m. on Monday, March 30, 2020, it will close its border with Cebu City, where more cases of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) have been reported.
According to Executive Order 5-O that Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia signed Saturday, March 28, “no person shall be allowed entry into the territorial jurisdiction of the Province of Cebu.”
These borders include the town of Balamban and the city of Danao in the north; Toledo City in the west; the cities of Lapu-Lapu and Mandaue and the towns of Liloan, Consolacion and Compostela in the east; Talisay City in the south; and Cordova in Mactan Island.
The following, though, are exempted from the restriction:
- Provincial governor, vice governor and board members;
- Justices of the Supreme Court, Court of Appeals, Court of Tax Appeals and Sandiganbayan;
- Ombudsman and deputy ombudsman;
- Congressmen from the Province of Cebu, Cebu City and the lone district of Lapu-Lapu City;
- Judge and skeletal work force of the regional, metropolitan, city and municipal trial courts;
- Regional and provincial directors of different national government agencies;
- Local government officials;
- Members of the diplomatic corps such as consuls and ambassadors;
- Employees of the Provincial Government;
- Employees of the municipalities and component cities of Cebu Province as authorized by the local chief executive (LCE);
- Prosecutors and the skeletal work force of their offices;
- The skeletal work force of other government agencies;
- Officials and staff of the Department of Health;
- Private and government doctors, nurses and other medical personnel;
- Hospital workers, administrative staff and janitors;
- Members of the Philippine Red Cross, but only for official functions;
- Media personnel accredited by the Provincial Government;
- Members of the Philippine National Police (PNP), Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and other security personnel;
- Field personnel of the Visayan Electric;
- Field personnel of the Metro Cebu Water District;
- Field personnel of PLDT, Globe, Smart, Sun and other telecommunication companies;
- All energy (electricity, fuel and petroleum)-related work force, including those who perform technical services;
- Officials and employees of banks and money transfer establishments;
- Delivery personnel of vehicles carrying cargo and other essential goods with or without load (maximum of two including driver) subject to the observance of strict protocols;
- Persons with a preexisting medical condition that necessitates treatment in a medical facility. A certificate from LCEs of the local government unit having jurisdiction over his or her residence must be secured as well as a medical certificate;
- Persons involved in accidents and medical emergencies. One member of the family or household and a driver may accompany said persons;
The governor may grant an exemption upon presentation of a written request with justifiable reasons.
On Saturday afternoon, March 28, the Cebu City Government distributed its own green ECQ passes to the 80 barangay captains.
The green passes are for city residents.
Special Assistant to the Mayor Jose Daluz III said each household will get only one pass.
The passes will be distributed house to house by barangay officials, police and other authorized persons by the mayor.
Daluz met with the 80 barangay captains where they decided that the pass would not be released until the owner filled out an application form and wrote down the names of everyone living in the house.
“In the ECQ application, all those living in the house should be put. They should then nominate three members who can use the pass, but they can only go outside one at a time,” said Association of Barangay Councils president Franklin Ong. “If they go outside, it should be for essential purposes like buying food or medicine,” he said.
The same rule will apply for occupants of boarding houses, he said. Only three boarders can hold the ECQ pass and can go outside one at a time, he said.
Since some barangays have already distributed ECQ passes, these will be honored only in the barangay, Daluz said.
City Administrator Floro Casas Jr. said the City has printed 250,000 green passes.
The ECQ passes are divided depending on the population of the barangay.
The first 10 barangays with the highest population were given the most number of passes like Guadalupe (9,000), Tisa (8,500), Basak San Nicolas (8,000), Mambaling (7,500) and Lahug (7,000).
In Mandaue City, the City Council approved on first reading the ordinance granting Traffic Enforcement Agency of Mandaue (Team) job-order personnel 30 working days in a month.
Team job-order personnel will be deployed to man 24-hour checkpoints along with members of the PNP and the AFP.
The checkpoints will be located on H. Abellana St. corner C. Cubacub St.; JP Rizal St. (Consolacion-Mandaue Boundary); H. Abellana St. corner C. Congson St.; Cansaga Bridge, U.N. Ave. (2nd bridge); A.C. Cortes Ave. (1st bridge); M. Logarta, Mahiga Bridge (Mandaue-Cebu City Boundary); CIP Bridge, Reclamation Area; Innodata, Briones St.; Hernan Cortes St. (Subangdaku- Panagdait boundary); A.S. Fortuna St.; M.L. Quezon St. (Mandaue-Talamban Boundary); and H. Abellana Rd. (Canduman-Talamban boundary).
The 24-hour operation of the checkpoints will be divided into three eight-hour shifts. Each Team job-order worker will have to take one shift, every day, for the next 30 days.
Mandaue City will be placed under a state of ECQ with the rest of Cebu Province on Monday, the day the ordinance will be up for approval on final reading. / JJL, KFD, ANV / PJB
To read the full copy of EO 5-O, go to:
March 28, 2020
snstr.co/8ArMarch 28, 2020
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