San Jose, Occidental Mindoro under extended ECQ

CITY OF  CALAPAN – The municipality of San Jose in Occidental Mindoro remains under Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) even as the rest of the province and several other areas in Luzon were downgraded to General Community Quarantine (GCQ) Friday.

Occidental Mindoro Governor Eduardo Gadiano, in a Facebook post, said the town is under extended ECQ until May 15 by virtue of Executive Order No. 61 Series of 2020 he issued.

Gadiano said that “despite the fact that the whole province of Occidental Mindoro is placed under GCQ, there is an urgent need for San Jose to be continuously under the ECQ considering that it has recorded a total of four confirmed [coronavirus  disease] cases already.”

He also said that there still a number or residents, including healthcare workers and employees of San Jose District Hospital, who are awaiting their  COVID-19 test results.

The EO also said that San Jose Mayor Romulo Festin, in his letter addressed to Major General Ruben Carandang, regional director of Office of Civil Defense -Mimaropa (Mindoro, Marinduque, Romblon, Palawan)  requested the ECQ extension.

In a meeting held among the members of the Department of Health Office – Occidental Mindoro, Provincial Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) on COVID-19 and Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, it was unanimously recommended that San Jose remain under ECQ.

The status of the Mimaropa region was earlier lowered by the national IATF from ECQ to GCQ.

But Regional Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council Memorandum No. 62 Series of 2020 gave authority to all Mimaropa provincial governors to declare ECQ still in accordance with IATF.

The regional IATF approved the suggestion of the provincial and the municipal IATFs led by Gadiano and Festin for the extension of the ECQ to protect the public from the spread of coronavirus.

As of Friday, Occidental Mindoro has five confirmed cases of COVID-19.

GSG