Mayors in Metro Manila are looking at easing the curfew hours in the National Capital Region (NCR) to facilitate longer business hours amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Raffy Tima reported on “24 Oras” on Monday that the mayors are mulling easing the current curfew from 10 pm to 5 am to 12 am to 5 am.
“Mas maganda na paigtingin natin ‘yong ating curfew para tuloy-tuloy na ‘yong ating pagbaba noong ating COVID, kasi kapag nawala ‘yong curfew, extended, maglalabasan ‘yong mga youth na makikita natin sa kalsada,” Parañaque Mayor Edwin Olivarez said.
(We should strengthen our curfew so our COVID-19 cases would continue to decline. If we will remove the curfew, the young people would go out on the streets.)
Aside from easing the curfew in Metro Manila, the mayors are also studying, allowing 18 to 65 year-olds to go out.
“Unang-una, makakatulong ‘yon sa ating pagbubukas ng negosyo, malaking tulong ‘yon sa ating mga businesses at the same time, ‘yong mga age rin madadagdagan, ‘yong age bracket para naman makalabas sila (para makabili) sa kanilang pangangailangan,” Olivarez said.
(First of all, it will help us to the opening of businesses. It will be a big help to our businesses at the same time. More could go out to buy their needs.)
Also read: Filipina nurse receives British Empire Medal in UK
Mayors consider easing curfew in Metro Manila
However, Olivarez said they would still monitor the number of COVID-19 cases in Metro Manila before easing curfew hours.
Last week, the University of the Philippines OCTA Research team said the number of COVID-19 cases in the Philippines has been decreasing.
“The number of cases in the Philippines has been decreasing, and currently at less around 2,500 new cases per day (based on case reports),” the OCTA Research team said.
“The reproduction number in the Philippines is 0.87, in line with the downward trend in test reports,” it added. A reproduction number below 1 means a flattened curve, according to the UP OCTA team.
For the National Capital Region, the researcher also said the number of its COVID-19 cases also decreased to less than 1,000 new infections per day.
The reproduction number in NCR remained below 1 at 0.82 during the same period.