Placing Bacolod City under ECQ up to IATF, says Palace

April 29, 2020

Malacañang said on Wednesday it would be up to the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases to decide on whether or not Bacolod City would be placed under the enhanced community quarantine(ECQ).

This was after the City Council approved a resolution asking the IATF to allow the city government to prolong the ECQ in Bacolod until May 15.

"The appeal of Bacolod City officials asking for President Rodrigo Roa Duterte to extend enhanced community quarantine until May 15, 2020 has reached the Office of the President," said Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque in a statement.

"Aforesaid appeal needs to undergo protocol such as the approval of the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases. Let us just wait for IATF's decision in this regard," he added.

Bacolod City and Negros Occidental were not included in the IATF's list of places that has to be under ECQ until May 15.

The areas where ECQ would be enforced until mid-May were Metro Manila, Central Luzon except Aurora, Calabarzon, Pangasinan, Benguet, including Baguio City, Iloilo, Cebu, including Cebu City, and Davao City.

Roque earlier said that places under ECQ should enforce stringent quarantine measures; public public transportation system are suspended; only essential businesses and services are allowed to operate; and subject to further evaluation before transitioning to general community quarantine. Celerina Monte/DMS