No need for quarantine pass in GCQ areas – DILG
“Hindi na kailangan ng quarantine pass sa (in) general community quarantine, hindi na siya absolute,” Interior Secretary Eduardo Año told CNN Philippines’ The Source. “Kasi ang ating GCQ, nakita natin hindi na siya ECQ (enhanced community quarantine) or total lockdown. Ang GCQ, ang tinitingnan na lang natin dito… meron pa rin tayong tinatawag na mga minimum health standards.”
[Translation: There’s no need for a quarantine pass during general community quarantine, it’s not absolute. Because in our GCQ, it’s not a total lockdown anymore. In GCQ, what we’re looking at is… there are what we call minimum health standards.]Año, explaining the development, said officials would presume that citizens have already developed “discipline” when they hit the roads for errands.
“Ang ating presumption dito, nagkaroon na ng disiplina ‘yung mga tao, at ‘yung pamilya, nasanay na sila na isa na lang ang lumalabas sa kanila. Preparation papuntang new normal,” he added.
[Translation: The presumption is, people already have discipline, and families are already used to only one member heading out. This is our preparation for the new normal.]The sentiment was shared by Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque, who said that discipline was one of the deciding factors in the COVID-19 Inter-Agency Task Force’s recommendation to place Metro Manila under a more relaxed community quarantine starting June.
“The level of confidence is very high. Unang-una napatunayan ng mga Pilipino na kaya nilang sumunod… pinatunayan natin na disiplinado ang mga Pilipino,” Roque said in his virtual media briefing in the same day.
[Translation: The level of confidence is very high. First of all, we proved that Filipinos can follow the rules. We proved that they have discpline.]“Discipline, on top of case doubling rate improvement, ang (is the) basis for relaxing,” he added.
The capital region and some high-risk COVID-19 areas are under the stricter modified enhanced community quarantine until May 31.
For now, only essential workers and health frontliners are allowed to go by their routines. Residents are encouraged to stay at home, but are allowed to head out for emergency, food, and other important errands.
The IATF has formally recommended that Metro Manila shift to GCQ from June 1 to 15, with high-risk barangays (villages) still subject to localized lockdowns.
Most people will still not be allowed outside their respective cities, municipalities, or provinces under general community quarantine unless they are going to or from work, reminded Joint Task Force COVID-19 Shield commander PLt. Gen. Guillermo Eleazar.
The proposal, however, would still have to be approved by President Rodrigo Duterte, who is expected to make the announcement on Thursday night.