Borongan, Samar goes back to stricter MECQ to stop COVID spread

BORONGAN CITY – The city of Borongan in Eastern Samar will revert to a much stricter modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ) for two weeks starting June 13, 2021 in a bid to slow down the spread of the COVID-19.

Borongan City Mayor Jose Ivan Agda on Friday signed Executive Order No. 002-0621, which prohibits all forms of mass gatherings, and the closure of tourist destinations and recreational establishments.

Drinking liquor in public was also prohibited. Curfew hours take effect from 8 p.m to 5 a.m.

Under MECQ, strict home quarantine shall be observed in all households while movements of residents will be limited to buying essential goods and services.

In a virtual press conference on Friday, lawyer Romeo Alexis Devora, chairperson of the local health and safety task force, said the city government will intensify the enforcement of health protocols such as the proper wearing of face masks and shields and observance of physical distancing.

Violators shall be asked to pay P3,000 each for the first offense.

Residents from outside Eastern Visayas are also mandated to present a negative COVID-19 swab test result even if they are already fully vaccinated. Antigen test results are not accepted.

Mayor Agda believed the surge in COVID-19 cases in the city was because people think that the virus is gone since many have themselves inoculated already.

Borongan, which is currently under the loosest modified general community quarantine, has 43 active COVID-19 cases with seven deaths.

JPV