Gov’t warns revocation of permits of businesses still operating in Taal dangerous areas

January 20, 2020

The Department of Interior and Local Government ( DILG) warned on Monday businesses within the 14-kilometer danger zone as well as those overlooking the Taal Volcano in Tagaytay City that their permits could be revoked if they continue to operate.

In a press briefing in Malacanang, DILG Undersecretary Epimaco Densing III said the government is also discouraging tourists or locals to go to Tagaytay since Taal volcano is still under Alert Level 4.

He raised concern that when these people go to Tagaytay, the volcano might suddenly erupt.

"They can add up to the (government's) work. So we are really discouraging them from going to the area or even in Tagaytay City," he said.

Senator Francis Tolentino, a former Tagaytay City mayor, reportedly told the hotel operators in the city to operate days after the volcano's phreatic explosion on January 12, acciording to a newspaper.

Asked for the possible penalty against businesses, which would defy the government's order, Densing said, "this is a local government issue. That is why we have to write to the mayor. If they do not follow the mayor, the mayor can close them down."

"Number one they can cancel their mayor's permit. Their operations permit. On our side, sa DILG, we can send the Philippine National Police to close them down just to ensure and make sure they follow the orders there is no commercial operations at least within the 14-kilometer danger zone," he added.

Densing could not give yet any specific assistance that the government could give to the businesses being affected due to continuous closure, except talking with them.

"The only thing we could do is to talk with them and see how we could relieve them of the pressure of not earning in the meantime...hopefully, we could have a dialogue with the businesses and see what kind of assistance we could give together with the Department of Trade and Industry," he said.

In the same briefing, Department of Science and Technology Undersecretary and Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology Director Renato Solidum Jr. said there was no plan to lower the volcano's alert level since the threat that it would erupt was still there.

"And if there are local government officials that allow the entry of their people, I hope that they will stop that...we can't determine when the eruption will come. The danger is there. We all know that it will come. We can only say that it has come when it happens," he said.

He added the government was not sure if during the four-hour window for residents to go back to their homes, no eruption would take place.

Solidum, meanwhile, also said that the series of earthquakes felt in Mabini, Batangas on Sunday night was not connected to the Taal eruption.

He said the jolts, with magnitude 4.2 as the strongest, were due to the fault, which initially moved in April 2017.

"So they are independent with the Taal Volcano," the official added.

Some residents in Mabini raised concern over the recent tremors.

Mabini is hosting about 3,000 evacuees from the areas within the Taal danger zone.

A hospital in Batangas City, which was also affected by the earthquakes, immediately ordered its patients to evacuate to the ground level on Sunday night. Celerina Monte/DMS