Iloilo, NegOcc extend MGCQ protocols

By Francis Allan L. Angelo and Dolly Yasa

The provinces of Iloilo and Negros Occidental extended the Modified General Community Quarantine status in their areas while awaiting final word from the national interagency task force on emerging infectious diseases.

Governors Arthur Defensor Jr. of Iloilo and Eugenio Jose Lacson issued their respective executive orders extending the MGCQ guidelines in the two provinces.

The MGCQ, which aims to slow down the spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), in Western Visayas is supposed to end today, June 15, 2020.

Defensor extended the MGCQ via Executive Order No. 128-B which he issued on June 15, 2020.

The MGCQ was first imposed on June 1 via EO No. 128.

“Whereas, pending issuance by the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) of the resolution on community quarantine measures that shall be implemented in the province after 15 June 2020, there is a need to extend the effectivity of EO 128, as amended, for interim governing procedures,” read EO 128-B.

In Negros Occidental, Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson signed at 5:30 pm EO 20-26, Series of 2020 which also extended the duration of the MGCQ until June 30, 2020.

The salient points of Lacson’s EO are:

-Entry of Negrense locally stranded individuals (LSIs) from the island of Cebu shall only be allowed at the government port in Escalante City

-Admission of Returning LSIs from the island of Cebu contingent on the capacity of isolation facility in Cadiz City

-Passengers arriving from the island of Cebu shall undergo mandatory reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction test (RT-PCR) test and shall undergo mandatory government quarantine

– All LSIs arriving from Manila shall undergo mandatory RT PCR test, the LSIs shall be picked up by the LGU where he / she resides.

-All LSIs from Iloilo and shall undergo mandatory RT PCR test.