Metro Manila mayors push for ECQ in NCR

The Metro Manila mayors want a two-week enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) as a response to the Delta variant threat, Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) Chairman Benhur Abalos said in a virtual press briefing yesterday.

Abalos said all the Metro Manila mayors are pushing for ECQ despite President Duterte’s decision on late Wednesday night the imposition of a general community quarantine (GCQ) with heightened restrictions in NCR until August 15. Obviously, this isn’t as stringent as an ECQ.

“Lahat nakapirma, lahat kami,” Abalos said while holding a resolution signed by himself and the 17 Metro mayors that are part of the Metro Manila Council or MMC.

The resolution was the product of an emergency meeting between Abalos and local chief executives Wednesday wherein they practically endorsed the re-imposition of an ECQ – the strictest lockdown possible – over the National Capital Region (NCR).

“ECQ talaga, ‘yun ang decision namin. ECQ talaga ang gusto namin if the funds of the national government will allow it,” he said.

Abalos said in statement late Wednesday night that the NCR mayors were ready for a two-week ECQ for as long as the national government can provide aid via the Social Amelioration Program (SAP). This is essential since the ECQ would severely hamper NCR residents’ ability to work.

The MMDA chief said the mayors further suggested that ramped up vaccinations must be conducted during the proposed two-week ECQ.

“Kung hindi kaya, we are proposing several restrictions… lagyan mo pa ng restrictions [yung GCQwithheightenedrestrictions],” Abalos said.

He said he will meet with the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) at 2 p.m. Thursday to discuss the possible additional restrictions.

He said they would “brainstorm” during the meeting, although he mentioned that reviewing the capacities of establishments like restaurants would be important.

Abalos began the Thursday press briefing by saying that coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases in several areas in the metropolis have doubled or even tripled in the past few days. He didn’t specify these places.

He reiterated that the proper mindset should be to treat these cases as all due to the Delta variant, which he said was 60 percent more transmissible than the other variants of COVID-19.