New quarantine classification in Cebu City ‘final’

FILE: Panorama of Cebu City South district (Photo by Peter Binter – Peter Binter, Public Domain)

MANILA – President Rodrigo Duterte’s recent announcement on the latest quarantine classification in Cebu City is already final and can only be modified after June 30, Malacañang said on Wednesday.

“Noong nag-anunsiyo na ang Presidente, final na ‘yan. Kinakailangang mag-hintay sa end of the month para magkaroon ng bagong classification (When the President made an announcement, that’s already final. We need to wait for the end of the month for the new classification),” said Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque in an interview with state-run PTV-4.

Cebu City is the only area in the country that was put under enhanced community quarantine (ECQ), the highest level of community quarantine, until June 30.

On Tuesday, Cebu City Mayor Edgar Labella said his office will appeal for a reclassification of the community quarantine in the city.

Labella sought to place Cebu City under general community quarantine (GCQ), which is a more relaxed community quarantine than the ECQ.

In a separate interview with dzBB, Roque said the Cebu City government should accept Duterte’s decision because the area is currently in a “dangerous level.

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“Siguro tanggapin na lang natin ang mapait na solusyon (Let’s just accept this bitter solution),” he said. “Alam ko po mapait ito pero hindi naman po kinakailangang magkaganito. Kinakailangan lang mag-cooperate ang lahat (I know this might be unacceptable for some but we need the cooperation of everyone).”

Malacañang on Tuesday justified Duterte’s decision to impose ECQ in Cebu City, saying that it is the only “individual city” in the country that has the highest incidence of Covid-19.

Modified ECQ was imposed in Talisay City.

On the other hand, general community quarantine (GCQ) was implemented in Metro Manila; the provinces of Cagayan, Isabela, Nueva Vizcaya, Quirino, Aurora, Bataan, Bulacan, Tarlac, Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, Quezon, Occidental Mindoro, Bohol, Cebu, Negros Oriental, Siquijor; and the cities of Santiago, Olongapo, Mandaue, Lapu-Lapu, Zamboanga, and Davao.

The rest of the country was under modified GCQ.