All cargo vehicles allowed to travel amid quarantine

FILE: A Quezon City Police District (QCPD) personnel gives the thumbs-up sign to the driver of a supermarket delivery van after presenting documents at a checkpoint near Welcome Rotonda in Quezon City on Sunday (March 29, 2020). (PNA photo by Joey O. Razon)

MANILA – The Joint Task Force Corona Virus Shield (JTF CV Shield) on Wednesday reiterated that all cargo vehicles, including those carrying raw materials for essential products or services, are allowed to travel amid the enhanced community quarantine in Luzon.

“Malinaw na sinasabi ng ating IATF sa guidelines na lahat ng mga cargo lahat po yun ay makakadaan. Kapag sinabi nating (The IATF guidelines clearly say that all cargo will be allowed to travel. When we say) cargo, it doesn’t mean just essential items. For all you know, the non-essential items could be raw materials for essential items kaya lahat po kasama na yan (so everything is included). So in that case, pati yung mga gamit sa paggawa ng kabaong lahat po yan ay makakadaan (even the materials used in making caskets, everything will be allowed to pass),” said JTF CV Shield commander, Lt. Gen. Guillermo Eleazar, during the Laging Handa briefing aired at PTV4 on Wednesday.

This, as the task force established a total of 115 Dedicated Control Points (DCPs) in strategic locations nationwide to be inspected by the Philippine National Police-Highway Patrol Group (PNP-HPG).

He said there are 3,593 Quarantine Control Points (QCPs) where private vehicles would be inspected.

Only those considered as Authorized Persons Outside Residence (APOR) will be allowed to pass the QCPs.

“Itong QCP na mas marami, manned by the local police, ang iche-check nila ay mga (There are more QCPs and these are manned by the local police. They will check) non-cargo trucks. Gusto po kasi natin alisin yung mga paulit-ulit and (We want to get rid of the redundant and) unnecessary checking of cargo trucks to ensure that the movement of cargo is unhampered and unimpeded,” Eleazar pointed out.

He urged the barangay chiefs to cooperate with the police by refraining from putting their own checkpoints that could only hamper the delivery of goods.

With the extension of the lockdown in Luzon, Eleazar said that the campaign of the authority in implementing the guidelines would continue.

Eleazar also warned violators of the guidelines on ECQ that they would be arrested.

Currently, a total of 93,242 people have violated the guidelines with various offenses such as curfew.

Based on data from March 17 to April 7 provided by Eleazar, 53,049 were recorded in Luzon; 17,380 in the Visayas; and 22,813 in Mindanao.

He said 22,787 have been arrested while 66,063 persons were warned and 4,392 others were fined.

Aside from Luzon, other provinces in Visayas and Mindanao already implemented strict quarantine measures due to the Covid-19 threat.

A total of 657 persons were arrested for alleged hoarding and profiteering activities while 7,798 public utility vehicles have received citation tickets after the government temporarily prohibited all forms of mass transport to restrict non-essential travel.

Eleazar said residents who will go out of their houses without wearing any kind of face cover may be apprehended or sent home.

Eleazar also appealed to the local government units (LGUs) to pass an ordinance on requiring the wearing of face masks in public.

The JTF CV Shield is the enforcement arm of the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases. It is composed of the Philippine National Police, Armed Forces of the Philippines, Philippine Coast Guard and the Bureau of Fire Protection.