Churchgoers queueing at the entrance of Basilica Minore del Sto. Niño de Cebu on Sunday morning, September 6, 2020. | Photo courtesy of Councilor Philip Zafra
CEBU CITY, Philippines — Cebu City’s first Sunday under a modified general community quarantine (MGCQ) was greeted with more churchgoers, local officials noted.
City Councilor Philip Zafra told CDN Digital on Sunday, September 6, that they observed more people attending Masses being held in some of the city’s largest churches.
Zafra leads the city government’s team tasked to inspect religious gatherings and venues every Sunday.
“We really noticed and observed more churchgoers now that Cebu City is under MGCQ, and it was evident during the first Sunday of MGCQ,” said Zafra in Cebuano.
The councilor and several authorities from Cebu City Hall have been conducting inspections in churches since the city shifted to general community quarantine (GCQ) last August. GCQ is a stricter mode of community quarantine compared to MGCQ.
“Even church administrators told us that they, too, observed more churchgoers now that the city is under MGCQ. In Basilica, for example, the number of attendees rose from just around 200 in the previous Sundays to around 700 to 900 this morning,” added Zafra.
Zafra is referring to the Basilica Minore del Sto. Niño de Cebu, one of the country’s most prominent churches, situated in downtown Cebu City.
The centuries-old church recently allowed a maximum of 1,000 people to attend their public Masses.
READ MORE: More churchgoers allowed in Basilica Minore del Sto. Niño De Cebu
But even if the number of guests in churches has increased, Zafra said minimum health standards were being complied with.
“Just like the other two Sundays, both the church administrators and churchgoers themselves are following health protocols,” said Zafra.
In the meantime, Zafra urged the public to continue in observing minimum health standards. He also reminded families with children age 21 years and below, and senior citizens that they are not allowed inside churches.
“We would like to inform our lolos and lolas, and our families with minors age 21 years and below that they were not allowed inside churches as per Cebu City’s ordinance,” he explained.
Cebu City was placed under MGCQ last September 1. But Mayor Edgardo Labella decided to retain the mandatory stay-at-home order for senior citizens and those aged 21 years and below. /dbs