Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles said Metro Manila could possibly be placed under the less restrictive modified general community quarantine (MGCQ) on July 16 as long as localized lockdowns are imposed immediately.
Nograles emphasized that a shift to MGCQ will be one of the two options that will be proposed by the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) to President Rodrigo Duterte.
The second option, the Palace official said, is to keep the National Capital Region (NCR) under general community quarantine (GCQ).
“There are really two options here, MGCQ but mayor should be proactive or retain GCQ to give mayors more time to adjust.”
“There are really two options dito, puwedeng MGCQ pero dapat mabilis ang mayor or sige i-GCQ muna natin para bigyan natin ng panahon na masanay ang mayor (There are really two options here, MGCQ but mayor should be proactive or retain GCQ to give mayors more time to adjust),” he said in an interview over DZBB.
Should the President decide to place Metro Manila under MGCQ, Nograles said he will expect local chief executives to quickly implement localized lockdowns in a particular barangay (village) for at least 14 days.
According to the World Health Organization, the incubation period for COVID-19 is on average five to six days, however it can be up to 14 days.
Nograles said it will be up to Duterte to make the final decision on the matter.
“Hintayin natin si Pangulo ang mag-announce (Let’s wait for the President to make the announcement),” he said.
Last June 30, Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III said he wanted NCR and Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, and Quezon) to shift to MGCQ to revive the economy since the two regions compose up to 67 percent of the country’s economy.
“About 60% or 67% of our economy is based on NCR and Calabarzon.”
“You know, you put NCR, Calabarzon, that is where the economy is based. About 60 percent or 67 percent of our economy is based on that area. That should move more to the MGCQ as quickly as possible because people have to start working,” Dominguez said.
The finance chief also pushed for a localized lockdown where only barangays with a jump in the number of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases will be closed instead of an entire region or city.
“We should monitor it on a – maybe on a barangay level and if you know, the cases go up, just close it down. But do it on a place to place,” the finance head.
He said a company-to-company lockdown basis could also be considered.
At present, placed under GCQ until July 15 are Metro Manila, Benguet, Cavite, Rizal, Ormoc, Leyte and Southern Leyte. Also under GCQ until July 15 are Lapu-Lapu City, Mandaue City, Talisay City, Minglanilla, and Consolacion in Cebu province. The rest of the country is now under MGCQ while only Cebu City remains under the most restrictive enhanced community quarantine (ECQ).