During a press briefing on May 12, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque announced the “next steps” we are taking as the expiration date of the extended enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) draws near.

Cebu City, Metro Manila and Laguna will be under a modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ) until May 31, 2020, while other areas in the country were either placed under general community quarantine (GCQ) while others were lifted, without sacrificing health measures. 

Modified Enhanced Community Quarantine

Effective Date: May 16 to 31, 2020

  • Limited movement within the zone for obtaining services and work
  • Maximum of 50% operations of selected industries will be allowed
  • Limited transportation for essential goods and services
  • Limited transportation for those going to work and for essential services
  • Suspension of physical classes in all levels

Areas:

  • Laguna (Region IV-A)
  • National Capital Region
  • Cebu City (Region VII)

General Community Quarantine

Effective Date: May 16 to 31, 2020

  • Limited movements but government and almost all industries will be allowed to operate up to 75 percent except amusement and those with mass gatherings
  • Limited transport services with social distancing
  • Flexible learning will be allowed but without face-to-face learning

Areas:

  • Region II
  • Region III
  • Region IV-A (except Laguna)
  • Cordillera Administrative Region
  • Region VII (except Cebu City)
  • Region IX
  • Region XII
  • Region XIII

MINIMUM HEALTH STANDARDS

(No GCQ/ECQ after May 15)

  • Region I
  • Region IV-B
  • Region V
  • Region VI
  • Region VIII
  • Region X
  • Region XII
  • Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao

General Guidelines

WHO MAY GO OUT OF THEIR HOMES UNDER GCQ?

1. You may go out of your homes only to buy basic necessities. EXCEPT:

  • Persons 20 years old and below
  • Senior citizens
  • People with high-risk health issues

2. You will be subjected to mandatory temperature checks, you have to wear a mask outside the house, and you many not consume alcohol in public places. Physical distancing will strictly be observed.

3. Local government units shall impose curfew for non-workers, from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m.

4. Checkpoints will remain in place. You are required to bring a valid I.D. wherever you go. You will still be questioned if you defy the GCQ rules.

PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION, GOVERNMENT OFFICES, OTHER ESTABLISHMENTS DURING GCQ

1. Public transportation may operate but at reduced capacity.

2. Airports and seaports may operate to allow the unhampered movement of goods.

3. All government offices will resume operations.

4. In shopping malls and commercial centers, only non-leisure stores (supermarkets, hardware stores, clothing shops) will be allowed to reopen. Malls will limit the entry of shoppers.

5. Diners are still prohibited from eating in restaurants. Food shops may only do take-out and delivery.

6. Barbershops, salons, spas, and other personal-care businesses will resume operations, subject to strict health standards.

7. Priority construction projects can resume.

8. Publishing activities, and movie, music, and television productions will also be allowed.

WHO ARE ALLOWED TO GO TO WORK DURING GCQ?

1. Selected workers in non-essential services are allowed:

  • Electronics
  • Exports
  • Manufacturing
  • E-Commerce
  • Delivery
  • Repair Services
  • Maintenance
  • Housing

2. In certain sectors, half of the employees will be working from home, while the other 50 percent will work on site. These sectors include:

  • Finance
  • Business Process Outsourcing (Bpo)
  • Non-Leisure Trade And Service

ESTABLISHMENTS THAT REMAIN CLOSED UNDER GCQ

  • Schools
  • Amusement Centers
  • Gyms, Sports Facilities
  • Gambling And Betting Activities
  • Libraries And Museums
  • Tourism Services

MASS GATHERINGS STILL PROHIBITED UNDER GCQ

  • Concerts And Shows
  • Festivals
  • Trainings And Workshops
  • Conferences
  • Conventions
  • Tournaments
  • Rallies And Parades

BUSINESS SECTORS ALLOWED TO OPERATE

  • Agriculture, fisheries, forestry, and logging
  • Manufacturing and processing plants and the entire value chain (raw materials, inputs, and packaging) of basic good products, essential products, medicine, and medical supplies
  • Mining and quarrying
  • Extraction of crude petroleum and natural gas
  • Food manufacturing and supply chain
  • Food preparations and water refilling stations
  • Power, energy, water, IT and telecommunications supplies and facilities, waste disposal services, sewerage, property management, and building utility services
  • Media
  • Manufacturing companies and suppliers of construction equipment
  • Data gathering, survey activities of the Philippine Statistics Authority for COVID-19, national ID registration
  • Publishing activities
  • Advertising and market research
  • Real estate activities, except buying and selling
  • Legal and accounting
  • Insurance, reinsurance, and pension funding, except compulsory social security
  • Architecture and engineering activities, technical testing and analysis
  • Scientific and research development
  • Government frontline offices
  • Electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply
  • Logistics service providers: cargo handling, warehousing, trucking, freight forwarding, and shipping lines

ESTABLISHMENTS THAT MAY REOPEN UNDER GCQ

  • Malls and commercial centers: hardware stores, clothing, and accessories, and non-leisure stores
  • Hospitals and medical clinics
  • Dental and EENT (eye, ear, nose, throat) clinics
  • Veterinary Clinics
  • Retail establishments: groceries, supermarkets, hypermarkets, convenience stores, public markets, pharmacies, drug stores
  • Banks and capital markets
  • Accommodation
    • buildings used as quarantine facilities for returning overseas Filipinos, and for temporary accommodation of workers in essential industries like healthcare facilities, banks, BPOs, exporters, and other frontline service sectors
    • Hotels for areas outside Luzon for existing bookings for foreigners or those with long-term bookings; stranded passengers; distressed OFWs; healthcare workers
  • Barbershops, salon, spas, and other personal care industries with strict health standards
  • Wholesale and retail trade and repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles
  • Laundry shops, including self-service machines
  • Business process outsourcing companies with temporary accommodation and shuttle services for on-site workers or work-from-home arrangements

SERVICES THAT MAY REOPEN UNDER GCQ

  • Repair and installation of machinery and equipment
  • Repair of computers and personal and household goods
  • Services to buildings and landscape activities, except landscape care
  • Employment activities, manpower services for essential activities
  • Security and investigation activities
  • Rental and leasing, except for entertainment or mass gathering purposes
  • Gasoline stations
  • Transit of permitted persons to and from allowed establishments
  • Funeral and embalming services
  • Postal and courier services

STILL CLOSED

  • Gyms, fitness studios, and sports facilities
  • Sports-related mass gatherings, including but not limited to: trainings, games, tournaments, championships
  • Libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural activities
  • Gambling and betting activities
  • Travel agency, tour operator, reservation service and related activities
  • Activities of membership organizations
  • Physical classes, but flexible learning arrangements are allowed
  • Entertainment-related mass gatherings, including but not limited to: theaters, cinemas, large concerts, festivals, carnivals, conventions, shows, pubs, bars
  • Business-related mass gatherings, including but not limited to: trade shows, conferences, conventions, workshops, retreats
  • Politically-related mass gatherings, including but not limited to: election rallies, polling centers, parades, speeches, addresses

Public Transportation under GCQ


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