Iloilo City prepares for June 1 rush

By Emme Rose Santiagudo

The Iloilo City government is now preparing for the influx of people from neighboring provinces in Western Visayas when it exits the General Community Quarantine (GCQ) by June 1, 2020.

Even if the city will transition to the modified GCQ or the quarantine is lifted, City Mayor Jerry Treñas said the city will have to prepare for the sudden entry of people by June 1.

“Sa siyudad, ginapreparahan ta ang June 1 kay hopefully madula na ang GCQ or basi makadto na ta sa modified GCQ and this will be the time when people from other provinces will go to Iloilo City,” he said in a press conference on Friday.

Treñas said he already instructed Public Safety and Transport Management Office (PSTMO) head Jeck Conlu to prepare measures for the influx of people by June 1.

“Ang iban nga taga-probinsya makadto di, ginapapreparahan ta kay Jeck para kon magdagsa ang tawo diri preparado kita. Kon makadto kita sa modified GCQ or madula na ini ang quarantine sa aton, masige-sige na di ang pagdagsa sang tawo considering that we are the regional center,” he said.

According to Treñas, he is closely coordinating with the other governors in the region for the reopening of the borders after the period of GCQ.

“Kahapon nagtawag si Antique Governor Rhodora Cadiao gapamangkot siya kon pwede na kita ka-open (borders). Nagtawag man ko kay Aklan Governor Florencio Miraflores and Iloilo Governor Arthur Defensor Jr. and ang unanimous consensus nga hulatan ta na lang ang June 1 kay lapit na lang man,” he said.

Treñas issued Executive Order (EO) No. 078 on Thursday mandating the deployment of compliance officers to all seaports and terminals in Iloilo City in compliance with EO No. 75 or the guidelines of the GCQ in Iloilo City.

The compliance officers shall ensure that all persons in public places shall always wear face masks and strictly observe physical distancing which is at least one meter apart from each other.

The compliance officers will also ensure that passengers and drivers observe a “No Mask, No Ride” policy for all public utility vehicles (PUVs) and taxis.

Compliance officers can issue citation tickets to violators of rules that seek to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

The mayor has also issued EO No. 080 on Friday adjusting the curfew hours in the city to 10 p.m. up to 4 a.m. during the GCQ.

The City Engineer’s Office (CEO) has also painted markings in the loading and unloading areas in the city to ensure the practice of physical distancing.

Meanwhile, Treñas appealed to the public to cooperate on the last week of the GCQ in Iloilo City.

“Sa aton nga mga pumuluyo, last week na naton ini nga bilin sa GCQ, hopefully. So, let us try to do our best maubra ta tanan para indi kita madugayan sa GCQ. Always wear masks, practice physical distancing and frequent handwashing,” he said.

Iloilo City has been placed under enhanced community quarantine from March 20 to April 14, 2020.

The ECQ was extended to April 30 following the case of local transmission in the metro.

On April 13, the level of quarantine has been raised into an expanded ECQ, limiting the movement of people during weekends.

 

The ECQ was extended until May 15 upon the recommendation of the national Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) on Covid-19.

On May 15, the IATF announced that all areas in the country except for Cebu City, National Capital Region (NCR), and Laguna will be placed on GCQ from May 16 to May 31, 2020.