THE PNP yesterday said over 10,000 individuals in the National Capital Region (NCR) were accosted by police officers for violating quarantine and health protocols during the celebration of All Saints’ Day on Monday.
The 10,230 violators pushed to 166,277 the number of violators who have been caught since October 16 when NCR initially went on a 15-day Alert Level 3 of quarantine. The government last week extended the region’s alert level until November 15.
The PNP said 8,128 of the violators caught on Monday were accosted for violation of minimum public health standards (MPHS) which mandates the wearing of face mask, face shield and observance of physical distancing.
It said 2,068 were accosted for violation of curfew hours and 34 others were caught going out of their homes when they are not members of Authorized Persons Outside Residence or non-APORs.
Of the 166,277 total violators caught since October 16, the PNP said 125,465 were accosted for violation of MPHS; 39,947 for curfew violation; and 865 were non-APORs.
It said 98,702 (59 percent) of the violators were merely warned; 56,157 (34 percent) were fined; and 11,418 (7 percent) were brought to police stations for filing of charges.
At the same time, the PNP reported that 47 areas in Metro Manila are under granular lockdown as of Monday, affecting 250 households or 888 individuals.
These lockdowns are manned by 173 policemen and 172 force multipliers or barangay officials, the PNP said.
Presidential spokesman Harry Roque warned the public against being complacent amid the improving COVID-19 situation in the country.
“The truth is, as December comes, we expect more gatherings and there is a possibility that the number of cases would go up,” Roque said, as he reiterated the importance of adhering to minimum health protocols.
Infectious disease expert and Department of Health Technical Advisory Group member Dr. Edsel Salvana said that aside from a decline in COVID-19 cases, several factors are also being considered by the government when deciding a shift in the alert level of an area.
President Duterte last week approved the recommendation of the Inter-agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) to extend the Alert level 3 in Metro Manila until November 14. Also placed under Alert Level 3 are Baguio city, Bataan, Cavite, Laguna, Rizal, Iloilo City, Siquijor, Davao del Norte, Davao City and Lanao del Norte.
Aurora, Bacolod, Negros Oriental and Davao Occidental are under Alert Level 4 during the same period.
Under Alert Level 2 are Angeles City, Bulacan, Nueva Ecija, Olongapo City, Pampanga, Tarlac, Batangas, Quezon Province, Lucena City, Aklan, Antique, Capiz, Guimaras, Iloilo, Negros Occidental, Bohol, Cebu City, Lapu-Lapu City, Mandaue City, Cebu Province, Bukidnon, Cagayan de Oro City, Camiguin, Iligan City, Misamis Occidental, Misamis Oriental, Davao de Oro, Davao del Sur, and Davao Oriental.
GREEN LIST
Meanwhile, the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) yesterday expressed hopes that the “green list” of the Philippine government will expand beyond the current 46 states and territories.
In a televised public briefing, OWWA Administrator Hans Leo Cacdac said many overseas Filipino Workers have been asking to have their host countries included in the green list.
“We are supporting these calls. We hope that more countries will be included in the green list,” Cacdac said.
He said this is because having more countries qualified for the “green list” will ensure that more quarantine facilities will be available, especially with a large number of OFWs expected to arrive in the coming weeks.
“We can accommodate more OFWs, especially during this time of Christmas. OFWs can be with their families faster with reduced quarantine protocols,” said Cacdac.
In addition, the OWWA chief said having eased quarantine protocols will reduce the agency’s expenditures for returning OFWs.
“The faster they are released from quarantine, the more the cost of our hotel quarantine accommodation for OFWs will go down,” said Cacdac.
To note, countries that are green-listed may have their fully vaccinated travelers, including OFWs, enter the Philippines without the need to undergo facility-based quarantine.
This is in stark contrast to the previous policy of OFWs having to undergo quarantine for 14 days upon their arrival in the country.
For the period of November 1 until November 15, 2021, there are a total of 46 states and territories under the green list, which include Algeria, American Samoa, Bhutan, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, China (mainland), Comoros, Cook Islands, Eritrea, Falkland Islands (Malvinas), Hong Kong (Special Administrative Region of China), Kiribati, Madagascar, Mali, Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Montserrat, Nauru, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Niger, Niue, North Korea, Northern Mariana Islands, Palau, Poland, Saba (Special Municipality of the Kingdom of Netherlands), Saint Helena, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, Samoa, Sierra Leone, Sint Eustatius, Solomon Islands, Sudan, Syria, Taiwan, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Tokelau, Tonga, Turkmenistan, Tuvalu, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, and Yemen. — With Jocelyn Montemayor and Gerard Naval
