Vice President Leni Robredo on Sunday backed the recommendation of Metro Manila mayors to keep the general community quarantine over the nation’s capital region until the end of the year.
(Mark Balmores / FILE PHOTO / MANILA BULLETIN)
Robredo, a leader of the opposition, said the national government should listen to local officials on their suggestion because “they know well the situation on the ground.”
“Hindi puwedeng one-size-fits-all. Iyong mga lugar na iyong mga local officials na palagay nila mataas pa iyong community transmission, para sa akin kailangan silang pakinggan, eh, kasi sila rin iyong mahihirapan,” she said on her weekly radio show.
(It can’t be one-size-fits-all. For the areas where local officials think there is a high community transmission, we need to listen to them, because they are ones who would suffer from it.)
The vice president added they need to hear from local government officials since they are also the first to respond to coronavirus threats in their respective jurisdiction.
The National Capital Region has been under lockdown since the onset of the COVID-19 outbreak in March. It has been under GCQ since June as the government gradually eased quarantine restrictions.
The Metro Manila Council—the policy-making body of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) which is composed of the 17 mayors— said they want to extend the GCQ in NCR throughout the Christmas season.
President Duterte is set to announce the new community quarantine classification in the country on Monday, November 30.