Granular lockdowns will still be enforced in areas with high coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) cases even if they are under the least restricted Alert Level 1 status.
This is to allay public fears that another COVID-19 surge is forthcoming, according to Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Eduardo Año who assured the government’s readiness for the downgrade shift that allows more industries to flourish in the midst of the pandemic.
After the Alert Level 1 downgrade was announced in Metro Manila and 38 other areas, skeptics claimed the high of another COVID-19 spike which was experienced in Dec. last year when health protocols were eased.
“Sa atin pong patuloy na pagbaba ng kaso (COVID-19 cases) ay patuloy naman po ang pag-implement natin ng granular lockdown. Kahit po sa Alert Level 1, ang mga LGUs (local government units) ay magsasagawa pa rin ng granular lockdown para sigurado na mache-check pa rin po natin kung sakaling magkaroon ng transmission sa isang lugar. Sa bahay, kalsada, block o barangay, ay puwede pong ilagay sa granular lockdown (With the continuous decrease in COVID-19 cases, granular lockdowns are still implemented. Even in Alert Level 1 areas, the LGUs will enforce granular lockdowns to check the areas in the event there is transmission in a certain place. In houses, streets,a block or barangay these areas may be placed under granular lockdowns),’’ Año said.
In a recent briefing with the President, Año reported that 21 LGUs or 104 barangays are impsong granular lockdowns in 187 areas.
The DILG chief noted that only 16 which affects 215 households and 289 individuals are under granular lockdowns.
On the other hand, DILG Undersecretary Jonathan Malaya reiterated that specific parameters were set by the government that led to the Alert Level 1 deescalation.
He maintained in a message that “it’s about time we deescalate (to Alert Level 1) because our people are suffering already and we need to reinvigorate the economy.’’
“The area must be under low-risk classification (very low cases), total bed utilization is less than 50 percent, 70 percent of the target population is fully vaxxed (against COVID-19) and 80 percent of A2 (senior citizens) are fully vaccinated,’’ Malaya added.
With these specific guidelines set by the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF), Malaya noted that the the risk of contacting the ailments “is very low and manageable.’’
Further, Malaya pointed out that the “face mask rule, hand hygiene and vaccination rule is still in place under any Alert Level so those are our safeguards against any possible surge in cases.’’
Earlier, Año said that 100 percent indoor venue capacity will be allowed in areas placed under Alert Level 1, including in workplaces and business establishments.
But Año clarified that attendees must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 before being allowed in in-indoor venues.
The DILG chief also pointed out the importance of each individual’s adherence to national and local guidelines or ordinances since the public “is now our first line of defense.”
He also reiterated the Commission on Elections’ (Comelec) guidelines on how election campaign activities should be conducted amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic as stated under its Resolution No. 10732.
“Ito rin ay nakaanchor sa Alert Level system natin ano. So meron silang level 1, level 2, hanggang level 5 katapat ng alert level system (This is also anchored under the Alert Level system. So it has level 1, level 2 up to level 5 that is aligned with the Alert Level system),’’ he added. (Chito A. Chavez)