Manila: As COVID cases slide in the Philippines and vaccinations get ramped up, the Metro Manila Council (MMC) voted on Wednesday to lift the curfew in the National Capital Region (NCR).
What this means: commercial establishments are now allowed to operate and the public are allowed to go out at any time in Metro Manila.
In a Wednesday (November 3, 2021) resolution, the MMC members — composed of the 17 NCR mayors and the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) — said the curfew will be lifted from November 4, the Philippine News Agency reported.
• The City of Manila
• Quezon City
• Caloocan
• Las Piñas
• Makati
• Malabon
• Mandaluyong
• Marikina
• Muntinlupa
• Navotas
• Parañaque
• Pasay
• Pasig
• San Juan
• Taguig
• Valenzuela
• Pateros (Municipality)
MMDA Chair Benjamin “Benhur” Abalos Jr. said the lifting of curfew would also reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission by spreading out the influx of mall goers, especially during the coming Christmas holidays.
The new policy is subjected to existing ordinances of local government units on the curfew hours of minors and the “continued observance and enforcement of COVID-19 protocols and minimum public health standards.”
The Cordillera Administrative Region has 502,283 fully-vaccinated individuals, or 39.37% of its 1,822,719 population.
The national average of fully-vaccinated individuals, however, is 22.2% as of November 2, 2021. This ranks the Philippines 4th in the Asean, and 23rd out of 205 countries. The government aims to increase the average daily jab rate to 1.5 million doses.
Earlier, operating hours of malls in Metro Manila had been extended to 11 pm, instead of the usual 10 pm observed earlier.
Midnight to 4am curfew lifted
“To complement the said adjustment in the mall hours and thus provide the mall goers and mall employees ample time to get home, the prevailing curfew hours of 12 midnight to 4 am in Metro Manila should be lifted,” the resolution stated.
Metro Manila was placed under a “standardised and unified curfew” as part of the restrictions placed by the government to arrest the spread of COVID-19.
Metro Manila is currently at Alert Level 3 — movement restrictions are eased as new cases continue to drop in the region and other parts of the country.
A total of 60.4 million COVID vaccine doses had been administered nationwide since the rollout began in March 2021, the Philippines' Department of Health (DOH) said Wednesday.
From Thursday (November 4), passenger capacity allowed for public utility vehicles (PUVs) operating in Manila and its four adjacent provinces – Bulacan, Rizal, Laguna, and Cavite — will be increased to 70% from 50%. Trains (LRT 1, 2, and MRT 3, and the Philippine National Railways), will also be allowed to raise passenger capacity from the current 30% to 70%, according to the Philippines' Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB).
(With inputs from Philippine News Agency)
