Metro Manila Council (MMC) chair and Parañaque City mayor Edwin Olivarez said Metro Manila mayors are still undecided if provincial buses should be allowed to resume operations even under a "hybrid" general community quarantine (GCQ).
In an interview over Unang Hirit, Olivarez said they are still looking into allowing provincial buses to resume operations.
"Isa rin po 'yan sa tinitingnan natin, pero 'yan po ay pinag-aaralan pa ng ating IATF (Inter-Agency Task Force on the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases) (That is also one of the things that we are considering, but our IATF is still studying it)," Olivarez also said.
"Under GCQ, pinayagan na po 'yung ating TNVS (transport network vehicle services), point-to-point, tricycle. Ngayon po, tinitingnan na 'yung ating mga jeepney na makabyahe sila, pero susunod po sila sa guidelines na ibibigay po ng ating LTFRB (Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board). Alam naman po natin na hirap na hirap na po ang ating taumbayan, kaya nga po unti-unti nang binubuksan ang ating ekonomiya without sacrificing our health protocols (Under GCQ we allowed TNVS, point-to-point buses, and tricycles to operate. Now jeepneys are being allowed to operate, given that they follow the guidelines imposed by the LTFRB. We know that our people are already suffering so we are slowly reopening our economy without sacrificing health protocols)," he added.
Olivarez said the MMC has recommended to the IATF that GCQ be extended in Metro Manila from July 16 to the end of the month, but in a "hybrid" form.
"Sa ating pag-uusap with the Metro Manila mayors, napagkasunduan po naming irekomenda sa ating IATF itong extended na GCQ mula July 16 hanggang katapusan nitong July, pero magkakaroon po ng amendment tungkol sa guidelines doon po sa GCQ. Ito po 'yung tinatawag na hybrid quarantine. Ito po yung ire-relax nang konti 'yung ating mga guideline (In our meeting with the Metro Manila mayors, we agreed to recommend to the IATF to extend GCQ from July 16 until the end of the month, but there will be an amendment regarding the guidelines. This is the so-called hybrid quarantine. We are relaxing our guidelines a little)," he added.
Under "hybrid" GCQ, there will be more "relaxed" guidelines to give way to the reopening of the economy.
President Rodrigo Duterte is expected to announce an update on quarantine classifications on Wednesday (July 15).