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Government

4-DAY WORK WEEK, FLEXI WORK TO HELP GOVT, PRIVATE SECTOR COPE WITH COVID-19 – NOGRALES

A four-day workweek for government workers and flexi-work arrangements are among the options being considered by the government to help prevent the spread of COVID-19 as well as prevent job losses as the private sector attempts to cope with the impact of the outbreak on businesses. In an interview on Tuesday, Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles […]

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Politics

EXEMPT FACE MASK, SANITIZERS FROM TAXES – REP. HIPOLITO-CASTELO

Quezon City Rep. Precious Hipolito Castelo urged Congress yesterday to exempt facemasks, sanitizers and similar protective goods from import duties and local taxes amid the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) threat.Castelo, who is vice chairperson of the House committee on Metro Manila development, said exempting facemasks and other products like antiseptics from taxes could “assure adequate […]

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Politics

CONSIDER ‘DRASTIC MEASURES’ TO PREVENT COVID-19 OUTBREAK IN NCR — ABANTE

House Minority Leader Bienvenido “Benny” Abante Jr. on Monday urged the national government to study the implementation of “drastic measures” to prevent a full-blown COVID-19 outbreak in Metro Manila after the Department of Health (DOH) confirmed new cases of COVID-19 infections. “At this point, all options should be on the table given that the National […]

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Politics

ALLOW FREE FLIGHT CANCELLATION AND REBOOKING AMID COVID-19 – REP. HIPOLITO-CASTELO

Quezon City Rep. Precious Castelo is urging airlines and travel agencies to allow the free cancellation and rebooking of flights and tours to and in countries with confirmed cases of the coronavirus disease 2019 or COVID-19. “If passengers who have booked flights to these destinations are allowed to refund or rebook their tickets without any […]

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Government

DOH CAN REQUIRE MANDATORY REPORTING, QUARANTINE OF COVID-19 CASES – NOGRALES

Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles said with President Rodrigo Duterte’s declaration of a State of Public Health Emergency, both the public and private sectors can be mobilized to respond to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) threat. Nograles said the Department of Health (DOH) is empowered to require mandatory reporting of “emerging infectious diseases” as well as […]

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Politics

DOH MUST BE MORE TRANSPARENT, HAVE TEST KITS READY FOR COVID-19 – ABANTE

With the country recording its first confirmed local transmission of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), House Minority Leader and Manila Rep. Benny Abante Jr. on Sunday urged officials of the Department of Health (DOH) to be more transparent in its updates to the public, and to ensure that there are an adequate number of test […]

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Government

DOH CAN ORDER REPORTING AND QUARANTINE OF COVID-19 CASES — NOGRALES

Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles said that with President Rodrigo Duterte’s declaration of a State of Public Health Emergency, both the public and private sectors can be mobilized to respond to the COVID-19 issue. Nograles explained on Saturday that the Department of Health (DOH) is empowered to require the mandatory reporting of “emerging infectious diseases” as […]

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Government

DUTERTE TO VISIT BORACAY ON MARCH 12 – ROMULO-PUYAT

Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat has confirmed that President Rodrigo Duterte is visiting Boracay on March 12 to join efforts in boosting the public’s mood to travel around the Philippines. Aside from promotions, the Chief Executive will also inspect what has been done on the island since it was rehabilitated. “It’s his way of promoting domestic […]

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Government

GOV’T EXPLORING ‘ALL OPTIONS’ TO WEATHER COVID-19 ECONOMIC IMPACT–NOGRALES

The government is ready to weather the economic impact of the COVID-19 outbreak and is now exploring measures to mitigate the impact of the disease on trade, tourism, and employment, Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles has assured. Nograles on Thursday said: “At this point government is studying all options as part of contingency measures to reduce […]

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Politics

IMPLEMENT HOLIDAY ECONOMICS TO BOOST DOMESTIC TOURISM – GORDON

With the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) outbreak now affecting  the global tourism industry, Senator Dick Gordon stressed the need to implement the Holiday Economics Law to boost domestic tourism. Gordon pointed out that with the warning from tourism experts that the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on tourism now being felt across Asia, will linger past […]