CEBU CITY, Philippines — While Cebu province’s appeal to move into a modified general community quarantine remains (MGCQ) pending with the Inter-Agency Task Force on the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-MEID), towns here were tasked to conduct an inventory of locally stranded individuals (LSIs) to facilitate their return to their hometowns.
In its Resolution no. 41, IATF placed Cebu and the rest of Central Visayas under general community quarantine (GCQ), a decision that Governor Gwendolyn Garcia said she would appeal for.
Should her request be granted, the provincial government intends to start the implementation of the MGCQ protocols on Independence Day, June 12.
The Provincial Information Office (PIO) reported that all mayors who attended the consultative meeting which Garcia called on Saturday, May 29, 2020, have “unanimously agreed” to already allow the free travel of provincial residents between component towns should its appeal to shift to MGCQ be granted by the national government.
READ: Cebu province remains under GCQ but gears up for MGCQ
“Ani na lang, i-inventory ang tanang locally stranded. Tell all barangay captains, kinsa ni sila, asa ni sila manguli. Once ma confirm na ni, you (mayors) will be told nga manguli para duna nay klaro nga pag-receive nila,” a PIO report quoted Garcia from the meeting.
(Let us do an inventory of all locally stranded [individuals]. Ask all the barangay captains who these people are and where they are headed for. After you would have confirmed this, then we will start to make travel arrangements so they can be properly received in their respective localities.)
The list of returning LSIs must be submitted to the Secretariat of the League of Municipalities of the Philippines-Cebu on Friday, June 5, so the league could inform the receiving barangays about the retuning LSIs.
The Capitol reckoned the need to still facilitate the return of the LSIs so they can go through the checkpoints and barricades set up by sitios (sub-villages) that restrict nonresidents from entering their communities.
“Wa na tay checkpoints but take note make use of this time para adtong mga stranded individuals, from one town to the other, mahimoan na og klaro nga kwentada ug masayod ang lungsod nga ulian nila by June 12,” Garcia told the mayors.
(We no longer have checkpoints, but take note, make use of this time to facilitate the travel of the stranded individuals from one town to another, and we have to make proper accounting so that the localities where they are headed for will also be properly informed of their return by June 12.)
The border entry restrictions in Cebu City that the province implemented since it declared the enhanced community quarantine on March 30 is also set to be lifted on June 3. This means that countryside residents who work in businesses that are located in the city will already be allowed to leave for work and return to their residences after they present their identification cards and certificates of employment. / dcb