Metro Manila mayors are eyeing the possible age restrictions for minors in shopping malls after reports disclosed that a two-year-old boy tested positive for the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) after a mall visit.
“That's very unfortunate. That's why we are still reminding everyone to follow the public health protocols and for the parents to discern in bringing their kids to the mall to be careful and only if it’s necessary,” said Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Eduardo Año in a GMA News report.
With the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) reviewing the age restrictions of minors allowed in malls, Año noted that the pandemic is far from over even if the COVID-19 cases are low.
“It’s within the authority of LGUs (local government units) to put restrictions as the situation may call for,” he added.
The report came from a doctor who shared in a social media post on November 10 that a two-year-old kid tested positive for COVID-19 after visiting a mall on Nov. 9.
Earlier, MMDA chairperson Benhur Abalos said that minors in the National Capital Region (NCR) are now allowed outdoors after nearly two years of being forced to stay home due to the pandemic.
The intrazonal and interzonal movement will be allowed for minors after NCR was placed under the alert level 2 quarantine classification.
On Nov. 11, the Department of Health (DOH) reported 1,974 new cases of COVID-19 upping the country’s to 2,811,248. (Chito A. Chavez)