By PIA-Bohol | 01:51 PM October 03, 2020
Bohol has survived three months of Modified General Community Quarantine (MGCQ) since July, and apparently, it would be the same for the next two months prior to Christmas in December .
Governor Arthur Yap, when signing Executive Order No. 48, effectively extended the MGCQ status in Bohol enough to possibly start a degraded status by Christmas.
Citing the increasing number of COVID-19 cases in the country and a local outbreak in Tubigon town, the governor saw the need to further extend the effectivity of EO No. 33 which placed Bohol then in July under MGCQ.
However, despite the clearly loosened status compared to the Enhanced General Community Quarantine then, the governor’s Order empowers local government units in the City, towns and Barangays to adopt granular lockdowns when the need arises.
By granular lockdown, the governor means focused and calibrated lockdowns in a sitio, a cluster of sitios, barangays or a cluster of barangays on hard lockdown, including the designation of containment and buffer zones.
The Executive Order, which the province’s chief executive signed recently, also hinted no commercial flights or sea trips for Bohol as yet.
His order said only sweeper flights catering to returning and exiting Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs), locally stranded individuals (LSI) and authorized persons outside residence (APOR) shall be allowed on those trips.
The governor also said these trips shall be allowed provided that prior and proper coordination with the receiving Local Government Units (LGUS) as well as supervised mandatory quarantine and testing protocols shall continue to be implemented.
Along with this, the EO also reminded Boholanos to continue complying with the COVID-19 health and safety protocols such as but not limited to social distancing, wearing of face masks and face shields, washing of hands and proper sanitation and hygiene.
And consistent with the extended Executive Order No 33, following the Omnibus Guidelines on the Implementation of the Community Quarantine in the Philippines as amended by the Inter Agency Task Force on the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases which provided for a more relaxed and less stringent community quarantine but then still imposing measures and protocols, EO 48 still imposes sea and air travel ban, province-wide curfew and home quarantine, partial liquor ban, mandatory use of face masks when leaving the homes and he imposition of one-household-one pass policy as well as the regulated operation of business establishments under the new normal, in line with the national standards.
The same EO 48 also ordered the closure of all public and private cemeteries from October 31 to November 3 to avoid congregation and congestion of people who traditionally flock to the cemeteries during those dates.
The closure of cemeteries however does not affect the schedule of masses and religious services in churches during those dates, but these have to be subject to the allowable capacity and the existing health and safety standards and protocols.
On this, the governor enjoins Boholanos to pay homage and respects to their dearly departed prior to and after the announced dates of the closure. (rahchiu/PIA-7/Bohol)
