CCTO suspends issuance of new delivery permits

CEBU CITY, Philippines — The Cebu City Transportation Office (CCTO) has temporarily suspended the issuance of new delivery permits in the city amidst the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ).

Alma Fe Casimero, the head of the CCTO, told CDN Digital that the decision was in consonance with the city government’s goal to reduce the movement within the city as mandated by the Interagency Task Force (IATF).

The order came from City Administrator Floro Casas, Jr., to finally end the issuance of new delivery permits after CCTO recorded an average of 400 issuance per day in June 2020.

Casimero said that the delivery permits is a renewable permit usually applied for by business every January, when they apply for the renewal of the business permits as well.

However, since the ECQ was implemented in April, they already noticed more applications for the delivery permits, especially for food and good delivery.

In order to help the public amidst the economic crisis, the CCTO obliged as long as these application were complete with requirements.

However, by June 2020, the CCTO noticed an influx of applications for vehicles not usually used for delivery, including private vehicles and sports utility vehicles (SUVs). This resulted to more cars on the streets since these were exempted from the general rules of the ECQ.

This prompted the CCTO to revisit the application process so it would not be abused by the public.

“If magsige tag issue, di na nato macontrol ang mga sakyanan nga magdagan-dagan. So we have to stop issuing the delivery permits,” said Casimero in a phone interview with CDN Digital.

(If we keep on issuing delivery permists, we cannot control the vehicles travelling.)

“Nahimo naman nuon siyag excuse sa mga tawo to travel. Mga sports utility vehicle, private vehicles, kwaan og delivery permits aron lang makagawas. Dili na siya maayo,” she added.

(This has become an excuse for people to to travel. Sports utility vehicle and private vehicles are applied for delivery permits so they can leave the house. This is not good.)

As of now, the CCTO has not specified when the suspension will end and Casimero said it will depend on the quarantine status of the city.

For those who already have delivery permits, they may still travel and deliver goods. However, for those that do not and still violate the ECQ guidelines, they will be penalized from P1,000 to P1,500.

She urged the vehicle owner to simply follow the health guidelines as of now as the city remains under ECQ and wait for it to be lifted.

Lalamove, an international on-demand delivery carrier, said in a statement to CDN Digital that the city government should not hamper the delivery of goods to the locked-down citizens.

“During this difficult period where people need to stay home to prevent the spread of the virus, deliveries must continue to remain unhampered to give people access to essential goods such as groceries and medicine. The availability of delivery services allows people reassurance that they may minimize their outside movement and stay indoors,” said Dannah Majarocon, the Managing Director of Lalamove PH

“We thank the IATF for continuously supporting this position by maintaining guidelines on the free movement of cargo, and hope that our local government may reconsider the suspension of the release of Delivery Permits. Lalamove prioritizes the health and safety of its users and partner drivers, practicing no contact deliveries, and promoting cashless transactions,” she added. /bmjo