Checkpoints, Home Quarantine Pass system to begin in Bacolod on Sept. 6

BACOLOD CITY –– The implementation of the Home Quarantine Pass (HQP) system and checkpoints in this city will begin on September 6 to 19.

Mayor Evelio Leonardia, in his executive order, said there is a clamor from the majority of the barangay captains in the city for the implementation of the HQP system to instead start on Sunday to give them time to complete the distribution of the passes in their areas.

The deferment will also allow for a longer period of information dissemination to Bacolod residents and those residing outside the city, he said.

Leonardia said he ordered the enforcement of the HQP system and checkup points under a Sangguniang Panlungsod ordinance granting him emergency authority in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The ordinance authorizes him to impose short term measures to augment minimum health protocols to prevent the spread of COVID-19, he said.

During a consultative meeting on August 30, medical groups pleaded for a two-week slowdown in the movement of people in Bacolod.

The HQPs and checkup points would regulate the movement of people within Bacolod and the entry and exit of out-of-towners to stem the local spread of COVID-19, Leonardia said.

LZB