San Juan City Mayor Francis Zamora said on Thursday, Oct. 27, that the public must know their own individual risks and learn to decide by themselves following the proposed lifting of the mandatory wearing of face masks indoors as part of the national government's efforts to boost the country's economy that has been battered by the Covid-19 pandemic.
"The operative word here is "voluntary". No one is forcing anyone not to wear a mask. So we have the option if we feel that the indoor area we are in is safe then we have the option not to wear a mask. If we feel that it's crowded and there's too many people and it's not safe then we have the option or choice to wear a mask," Zamora said in an interview with ANC.
"So I believe that we are being given a choice. This is something that I honestly appreciate because there are some instances where you may be indoors but it is not a high-risk area so I can opt not to wear my mask. But once I enter for instance a mall that is filled with a lot of people, I will choose to wear my mask," he added.
On Tuesday, Oct. 25, Tourism Secretary Christina Frasco announced that President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. is expected to issue an executive order, declaring the voluntary use of face masks indoors.
“As a result of the Cabinet meeting this morning, it was agreed that the President would be issuing an executive order for the IATF (interagency task force) recommendation to make indoor mask wearing also voluntary all over the Philippines with the few exceptions,” Frasco said in a Palace briefing.
Asked about his opinion on the proposed recommendation of voluntary wearing of facemasks inside public transportation, Zamora said that it is still the public's decision to wear or not wear it.
"If you were to ask me, I would rather keep my mask on while in public transport especially if we're riding the MRT where we all know could get filled at certain times of the day. But again, if the executive order will give us an option, if the executive order will say it will be voluntary, nasa satin na ho ‘yan (it is up to us). We should all know our individual risk. If we are persons with comorbidities or senior citizens or unvaccinated, we should know that even if it will be voluntary, we should know that we should keep our masks on," Zamora said.
"Again we are being given a choice. Di naman tayo pinipilit ‘wag mag mask. Binibigyan lang tayo ng pagkakataong magdesisyon kung dapat ba tayo mag-mask o hindi. (We are not being forced to wear a mask. We are just being given the chance to decide if we should wear a mask or not,” he added.
The local chief previously approved of the national government's decision allowing the voluntary wearing of face masks in open spaces and non-crowded outdoor areas with adequate ventilation.