PORT OF ENTRY. The Barcelona port in Escalante City is the entry point of vessels traveling from Tabuelan, Cebu to northern Negros Occidental. Starting June 1, 2020, the provincial government will impose protocols that will govern the entry of all persons into Negros Occidental whether through airports or seaports. (File photo courtesy of PIO Negros Occidental
BACOLOD CITY – Negros Occidental Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson has informed concerned agencies of the travel protocols that will be imposed by the provincial government once the airports and seaports reopen on June 1.
“These are the protocols we are following now for stranded Negrenses who want to return to Negros. They inform us and we register them, and we include them in scheduled sweeper flights. Once the airports and seaports reopen, the province wants to continue this policy,” Lacson said in an interview on Friday.
Lacson relayed the message in separate letters dated May 20 sent to officials of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP), Philippine Ports Authority (PPA), Philippine Coast Guard (PCG), and Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA).
The communications were addressed to Bacolod-Silay Airport manager Percy Manolesio, PPA-Bacolod port manager Joven Serran, PCG Commandant Joel Garcia, and MARINA Administrator Robert Empedrad.
Lacson said these protocols would govern the entry of all persons into Negros Occidental whether through airports or seaports.
“We hope that national government agencies will support the efforts of the province of Negros Occidental to combat the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic and make the province safe for all Negrenses,” he stated in the letter.
Starting June 1, the number of incoming passengers shall be based on the available quarantine rooms determined by the Provincial Health Office and all incoming passengers shall agree to stay at designated quarantine facilities until they are released based on their reverse transcription - polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test results.
The holding time for passengers under quarantine is expected to last only from one day to two days since the Molecular Biology Laboratory at the Teresita Locsin Jalandoni Provincial Hospital in Silay City is already expected to be fully operational by that time.
It is also required that tickets for airlines and sea vessels, including roll-on/roll-off and fastcraft, will be sold only to persons listed on the certificate of acceptance issued by the provincial government.
Passengers who will be prioritized are returning Negrense residents and the workforce of essential businesses allowed to operate during general community quarantine (GCQ).
The certificates of acceptance issued to the passenger can only be used once during the specified date, and it will be granted once per month, except during emergencies.
For data tracking systems and health monitoring, incoming passengers will be required by the Provincial Health Office and the Negros Occidental Tourism Division to fill out the tourist information and health declaration card before leaving the airport/seaport terminal.
The filled out forms will be collected at the Tourist Information Counter for encoding by tourism office representatives.
Meanwhile, Bacolod City Mayor Evelio Leonardia has sought clarification from the Department of Transportation (DOTr) on the reopening of the commercial sea and air travel in the city and the province after May 31.
In his May 21 letter addressed to Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade, Leonardia requested for a videoconference with him and Lacson to get guidance from the DOTr on the concerns.
“Our concern is: what happens after May 31? Will commercial inter-island sea travel between Negros Occidental/ Bacolod and other places resume? Will the Bacolod-Silay Airport now be opened for commercial flights from Manila, Clark, Cebu, and Mindanao, regardless of the risk status and quarantine categories of these other places?” he said.
Bacolod City and Negros Occidental have been placed under GCQ by the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases from May 16 to 31. (PNA)
