The Metro Manila Council (MMC) of Mayors, which is composed of the 17 mayors of the cities comprising the National Capital Region (NCR), is contemplating extending the Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ). The group will convene and discuss the matter tomorrow, May 9, 2020.
Parañaque mayor, Edwin Olivarez, who is also the incumbent chairman of the MMC, said that the council is in favor of the possibility of extending the ECQ in Metro Manila. He cited that the there are still some cities where the confirmed number of COVID-19 cases are still high. Lifting the lockdown too early may have serious consequences. Their recommendation will be forwarded to the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID).
Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary, Eduardo Año, on the other hand, has told reporters yesterday that they are planning to implement selective ECQ in some NCR cities after May 15.
“There are areas already in Metro Manila that are actually improving, like San Juan and Valenzuela, but Quezon City is still really what we call a very high-risk area with the 1,000 positive [COVID-19 cases].”
The lockdown of the NCR and other provinces is scheduled to be downgraded to General Community Quarantine (GCQ) on May 15, 2020. This move should allow partial operations and movement of employees of select industries to help restart the economy.
