PHOTO from Department of Transportation – Philippines Facebook
MANILA, Philippines — There is no absolute prohibition for vulnerable passengers such as the elderly when using the Metro Rail Transit-3 (MRT-3) amid the general community quarantine (GCQ), the line’s management said on Wednesday.
“Allow us to clarify that the MRT-3 does not have a policy on the absolute prohibition of the highly vulnerable sectors, including senior citizens,” read the statement.
“The MRT-3 protocols are aligned with the guidelines of the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Disease (IATF-EID), specifically on the requirement for persons who are highly at risk of contracting COVID-19, including those who are 60 years old and above, to stay home,” it added.
MRT-3 management issued the statement after the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) appealed to the Department of Transportation (DOTr) to lift the Metro Manila railway ban on senior citizens.
CHR said DOTr should follow the IATF guidelines which do not prohibit senior citizens from leaving their homes especially if they intend to avail of essential services.
The MRT-3 management however clarified that it allows vulnerable individuals including the elderly to board their trains provided that they will buy basic goods or will go to work.
“The rail line, however, allows susceptible individuals to board the train provided that their purpose for using transport is ‘indispensable under the circumstances for obtaining essential goods and services, or for work in permitted industries and offices,’ the exceptions of the IATF to the provision,” read the MRT-3 management’s statement.