‘This curfew lifting should push further the government’s effort to open the economy and thus provide more jobs and livelihood opportunities for Filipinos.’
THE Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) has announced the lifting of curfew in the whole National Capital Region starting today, November 4.
MMDA Chairman Benhur Abalos said Wednesday there will be no transition period, just a straight lifting today of the curfew ordinance that was imposed during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic last year, and lasted for 19 straight months.
Abalos, however, added that local government units in the NCR have varying ordinances about the mobility of minors, and some cities do have sanctions against minors caught loitering around at a certain time. The policy is that the MMDA will respect these local ordinances on minors, until the concerned LGUs revoke them.
Before this decision, Metro Manila was under a shortened curfew of 12 a.m. to 4 a.m., an improvement from the 11-hour strict curfew imposed in the whole of the metropolis aside from the general community quarantine or lockdown.
We note that the Metro Manila Council, the policy-making body in the region which is composed of 17 mayors, decided on the new curfew policy “so that mall hours can be extended.” After all, everybody is preparing for the Christmas season and mall owners are concerned about limited public transportation and curfew if they will extend mall hours for the Christmas season.
The traditional Christmas shopping spree for gifts and other items is nearing, and with this activity comes problems like heavy vehicular traffic, public transportation capacity, and the curfew. Abalos said the Department of Transportation was amenable to easing further to 70 percent capacity for jeepneys and buses, but mall owners were concerned that their sales and other personnel would find it difficult to go home with the region-wide curfew in place.
The mayors made the right decision in doing away with the curfew, in the face of continued lowering of COVID-19 caseloads and the ability of our healthcare system and hospitals to cope, not to mention the high rate of vaccination in the metropolis.
This curfew lifting should push further the government’s effort to open the economy and thus provide more jobs and livelihood opportunities for Filipinos.
