Heightened movement restrictions here are currently in place with village officials being asked to issue pass slips to residents who may need to go out for work and other travel essentials.
In a meeting with village officials on Monday, City Mayor Michael M. Keon urged residents to cooperate with local authorities as the city is now under the strictest enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) until August 15 to arrest the further spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19).
Based on the localized ECQ guidelines signed by the city mayor, it states that “the barangay hall shall serve as the command center” with a dedicated hotline number where residents may contact in case of emergency.
When issuing pass slips, each barangay shall immediately transmit via electronic messaging the name, purpose and destination of a person issued with pass slip to the mayor and the chief of police so that they can be easily validated at designated border checkpoints.
During the two-week duration of the ECQ which started on August 1, the Bureau of Fire Protection shall disinfect all business establishments which are allowed to operate every Sunday so they could open business again from Mondays through Saturdays.
The movement of individuals from other areas to Laoag shall only be limited to official duties or when accessing medical services or transacting business with banks and other financial institutions only.
There is also a specific schedule for the movement of people in specific areas such as every Tuesday for the towns of Pagudpud, Bangui, Adams, Dumalneg, Burgos, Vintar, Pasuquin, Bacarra, Carasi, Piddig and Sarrat while every Thursday for the city of Batac and the towns of Currimao, Paoay, Solsona, Dingras, Pinili, Badoc, Banna, Nueva Era and Marcos only.
Similar to the first declaration of ECQ in Laoag, all the 80 barangays have designated only one entrance and exit points to regulate the movement of people. All ambulant vendors shall only be allowed to sell their goods in a designated talipapa (community market) per barangay.
All public transportation going in or out of the city shall remain suspended while public transport within the city is allowed with some restrictions from Monday to Saturday only.
A public utility jeepney shall only be allowed to carry passengers at 30 percent capacity only, and one passenger each for taxi and tricycle. This public transport is only allowed to operate at least thrice a week based on the last digit of their franchise number.
On the part of the village front-liners who will be deployed in the barangay command center as well as in hard lockdown areas, they appealed that they should be vaccinated first for their protection.
During the initial rollout of the Covid-19 vaccines, it was observed that some village front-liners refused to receive their vaccines. But with the presence of the more contagious Delta variant, more residents are now lining up for the continuing vaccination rollout in the city.
As of July 30, 2021, the city government of Laoag reported at least 8,764 individuals were already fully vaccinated while 7,061 finished their first dose.
In implementing the ECQ guidelines, Keon assured the city government will provide relief aid to those who will be hardly affected by it. (
Source: Philippines News Agency
