Palace says “low-risk” areas where quarantine had been supposedly lifted, to be under “modified GCQ”
Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque made this clarification in a virtual press briefing on Wednesday, May 13, 2020, following the presentation made by Interior and Local Government Secretary Eduardo Año making an amendment on the earlier announced lifting of quarantine protocols on 37 provinces in the country.
Año said that the amendments would be submitted later in the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) following the complaints received from local government chief executives in the areas where quarantine was supposed to have been lifted as announced on Tuesday.
Because of this, there would be all areas in the country would go back to being under quarantine protocols effective May 16, he said.
“So uulitin ko po, wala na pong lugar sa Pilipinas na hindi nasa ilalim ng commuity quaantine. Yung nauna areas na walang community quarantine, balik sila under mofidied GCQ,” Roque said.
The amendment to the IATF Resolution No. 35 will put the 37 provinces and 11 cities which had been classified as green zones with no more quarantine protocols, will be reclassified as MGCQ areas where community quarantine protocols remain.
These are the following:
Luzon:
- Region 1: Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, La Union, Pangasinan, and Dagupan City (but these are under the assumption that the same conditions would be prevailing by May 14)
- Region 4-B: Marinduque, Occidental Mindoro, Oriental Mindoro, Romblon, Palawan including Puerto Princesa City.
- Region 5: Albay, Camarines Norte, Camarines Sur, Catanduanes, Masbate, Sorsogon, Legazpi City, and Naga City.
Of these areas, Albay and Legazpi City will be assessed again on May 14 if the low-risk conditions stay the same.
Visayas
- Region 6: Aklan, Antique, Capiz, Guimaras, Iloilo, Negros Occidental, Iloilo City, Bacolod City
- Entire Region 7
- Region 8: Biliran, Eastern Samar, Leyte, Northern Samar, Western Samar, Southern Leyte, Ormor City and Tacloban City
Mindanao
- Region 10: Bukidnon, Camiguin, Lanao del Norte, Misamis Occidental, Misamis Orienta, Cagayan de Oro City
- Region 12: North Cotabato, South Cotabato, Sarangani, Sultan Kudarat, General Santos City
- BARMM: Basilan, Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao, Sulu, Tawi-Tawi, Cotabato City.
The DILG chief said that these areas were previously classified as “low-risk” provinces and cities in the IATF Resolution no. 35 that had been previously announced by Malacanang.
“Marami pong local chief executives, governors, and mayors na nagsasagawa ng petition and request na hindi pa sila handa para tanggalin ang community quarantine kaya po nagkaroon tayo ng amendment na pagtitibayin sa IATF meeting na malalagay ang provinces na ito, ay malalagay sa Modified General Community Quarantine,” Ano said.
He said that the amendment would give further guidelines to LGU officials on how to implement the Modified GCQ, and on how to prevent the spread of the virus.
“Kasi pag walang quarantine baka magkaroon ng second o third wave (of virus infections),” Ano noted.
“Kaya wala na po tayong area sa buong Pilipinas na hindi under quarantine,” he said.