FACE MASK REQUIRED. A city government worker with mask checks the temperature of a motorist at a checkpoint in Tacloban City. Anyone who will stay outdoor is required to wear a face mask starting Saturday (March 21, 2020) as the city government enforces the 23-day lockdown to fight the spread of the coronavirus disease 2019. (Photo courtesy of Rommel Cabrera)
TACLOBAN CITY – Anyone who will stay outdoor is required to wear a face mask starting Saturday as the city government enforces the 23-day lockdown to fight the spread of the coronavirus diseases 2019 (Covid-19).
In a statement issued on Friday, Mayor Alfred Romualdez warned residents that they will face sanctions for defying the directive.
“The city government will deploy the police to implement this order as part of the intensified restriction on community quarantine,” the mayor said.
Romualdez told those businesses allowed to operate during the 23-day period to bar their employees and customers to enter the workplace without wearing a face mask.
Social distancing in business establishments and public utility vehicles will also be enforced.
The city government asked its business processing and licensing division and the city police office to check the compliance of business firms. Establishments will be closed for non-compliance, the mayor warned.
Under Executive Order 2020-03-017, allowed to operate in the city during the 23-day lockdown are hospitals, basic utility providers, take-out orders in restaurants, grocery stores, laundry services, water refilling stations, banks, remittance centers, gasoline stations, courier service, and funeral parlors.
The directive will take effect from March 21 until April 12, 2020, affecting public transportation and thousands of businesses in the city.
All public utility vehicles operating outside Tacloban City and offering transport services to passengers will no longer be allowed to enter the city.
Those allowed to enter the city are health workers, persons availing emergency medical services, national government workers, good delivery service providers, and media practitioners for as long as they are wearing a face mask. (PNA)
