File photo (INQUIRER/GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE)
MANILA, Philippines — Only individuals aged 18 to 65, and not 15 to 65, will be allowed to step out of their residence in Metro Manila amid the general community quarantine, the chairman of the Metro Manila Council (MMC) clarified on Monday.
“Okay po ang Metro Manila Council sa pagbubukas ng edad pagdating sa Authorized Persons Outside of Residence. Pero ang pinagkasunduan po, NCR (National Capital Region) lang po, 18 to 65,” MMC chairman Edwin Olivarez said in an interview on ABS-CBN’s Teleradyo.
(What the MMC agreed on was that only persons aged 18 to 65 are allowed out of their residence.)
“‘Yun po ang pag-uusap po namin doon, dahil minor po ‘yung 18 and below eh. Iniiwasan po natin ang mga bata na pagala-gala sa lansangan, at ‘yung ating mga kabataan ay mas vulnerable po sila kaysa sa mga 18 years old,” he explained.
(That was our agreement because those aged below 18 are minors. We don’t want them loitering in the streets since they are more vulnerable to the disease than those aged 18 years and up.)
Olivarez made the clarification after presidential spokesperson Harry Roque announced on Friday that persons aged 15 to 65 years old are now allowed to go out of their homes despite the community quarantine being imposed in the country to curb the spread of the new coronavirus.
Roque, however, said in his announcement that local government units may still impose specific age limits for minors, depending on the situation in their respective jurisdictions.
Previously, under IATF guidelines, those aged below 21 and above 60 years old are required to stay at home with the exception of work and accessing necessities.
Olivarez said the new age restriction on persons allowed to step out of their residences in Metro Manila was agreed upon by the mayors in the region during a meeting on Sunday with some Cabinet members who are also members of the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases.
“‘Yun po ay Metro Manila lang. Sa ibang syudad, sa ibang region, baka mag-15 to 65. Pero sa NCR po, 18 to 65 years old,” he said.
(That’s the case in Metro Manila. In other areas, the age restriction may be 15 to 65, but it is 18 to 65 in Metro Manila.)
“‘Yun po ang napagkasunduan kahapon at nandoon rin po ang ating mga secretaries,” he added.
(That’s what was agreed upon yesterday, with the secretaries in attendance.)
Based on data from the Department of Health, the National Capital Region has so far logged a total of 179,452 COVID-19 cases, with additional 846 cases reported on Sunday.
Of the total regional tally, 14,233 are active cases, 162,061 are recoveries, and 3,158 are deaths.
Nationwide, a total 356,618 of COVID-19 cases have so far been reported.
A total of 39,808 are active cases, while 310,158 patients have recovered while another 6,652 have died.