Police Lieutenant General Guillermo Eleazar said the Joint Task Force COVID Shield would add quarantine checkpoints to ensure only authorized persons outside of residence (APOR) would go out of their homes during modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ) in Metro Manila, Bulacan, Rizal, and Laguna.
Eleazar said in an interview on Dobol B sa News TV Monday that the checkpoints would also prohibit residents from traveling from one municipality to another to buy essential goods.
“Dahil po sa pagtataas ng level ng quarantine status, in essence po ay magdadagdag tayo ng checkpoint operations. Kung dati po ‘yung paglipat natin ng GCQ, usually ‘yung ating quarantine control points ay nasa boundary na lang ng probinsiya at mga rehiyon, dito po sa mga lugar under MECQ ay ‘yun pong mga boundary ng cities and municipalities, maglalagay na po tayo diyan,” Eleazar said.
(Due to the increase in the level of quarantine status, in essence, we will add checkpoint operations. If we used to move GCQ, usually our quarantine control points are just within the boundaries of the provinces and regions, here in the areas under MECQ, those are the boundaries of cities and municipalities, we will put them there.)
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“So that only APOR will be allowed to pass. ‘Yun pong mga non-APOR na mag-a-avail o bibili nitong mga goods and services na available, ‘yan po ay dapat i-avail nila doon sa lugar nila. Hindi na sila puwedeng mag-cross po ng cities and municipalities,” he added.
(So that only APOR will be allowed to pass. Those non-APORs who will avail or buy these goods and services that are available, they should avail them in their place. They cannot cross cities and municipalities.)
Interior Secretary Eduardo Año earlier announced local government units would enforce again the use of quarantine passes in MECQ areas starting today until August 18.
The Department of Health (DOH) reported 5,032 new cases yesterday, bringing the total number of cases in the Philippines to 103, 185. Of that number, 35, 569 were active cases, 65,557 already recovered, and 2,059 died.