DAVAO CITY – Establishments in this city have been urged to strictly enforce the mandatory wearing of face masks in indoor and other enclosed spaces.
Dr. Michelle Schlosser, spokesperson for local task force on coronavirus disease (Covid-19), said the transmission of the infection is more likely to happen in enclosed spaces with no proper ventilation than outdoors where wearing a mask is optional.
She said that members of the security cluster have been tasked to monitor the implementation of the face mask policy inside establishments but added that city government hopes for cooperation of establishments since the police also need to maintain security aside from monitoring compliance with the minimum public health standards.
“The monitoring will be done by the men in uniform, and we will need the help of the establishments because with so many people going around inside establishments here in Davao, they can outnumber our men in uniform,” she said.
After almost three years of battling Covid-19, Schlosser said the city government believes that establishments and other institutions know the importance of keeping face masks on in poorly ventilated offices to avoid contracting the infection.
She said City Ordinance No. 0307-20 passed on July 23, 2020 imposing mandatory wearing of face masks in public areas is still applicable for indoors.
Under the city ordinance, any person “caught not wearing a face mask in public places shall be penalized with a fine of P500 for the first offense; P2,000 for the second offense, and P5,000 or one-month imprisonment for the third offense.”
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. issued Executive Order No. 3 on Monday, Sept. 12, allowing optional wearing of face masks in open spaces or non-crowded outdoor areas with good ventilation.
Schlosser urged individuals who belong to the vulnerable sector, including citizens and immunocompromised, who may likely suffer from a severe to critical type of Covid-19, to keep their masks on in public and observe physical distancing.
“All of us have responsibility towards ourselves and other people. We appeal to people to wear your masks during social events. Please, you know what is risky and what is not... Be responsible because at the end of the day, you are not only one to be affected, you will also affect your loved ones and the entire community where you live,” she said.