THE PILOT run of the new lockdown system in Metro Manila has been extended until mid-October, the presidential palace announced late Thursday, but some business establishments will be allowed expanded operations.
The country’s pandemic task force, in its meeting held September 30, has decided to extend the pilot implementation of the Alert Levels System in the National Capital Region (NCR) until October 15, Palace Spokesman Herminio L. Roque, Jr. said in a statement.
The government on Sept. 16 started enforcing granular lockdowns with five alert levels in the NCR. Metro Manila was placed under Alert Level 4, the second highest level, until Sept 30.
In his statement, Mr. Roque said the task force also approved a recommendation to expand by an additional 10% the allowable indoor capacities of dine-in services, in-person religious services, and personal care services for fully vaccinated individuals in areas under Alert Level 4.
“Establishments allowed to operate under Alert Level 4, which have been awarded the Safety Seal Certification shall be allowed additional venue capacity of 10 percent beyond the prescribed venue or seating capacity,” he said.
Mr. Roque said the task force also approved the reopening of fitness studios and gyms at a limited 20% venue capacity for fully vaccinated individuals, “provided that all gym workers should also be fully vaccinated.”
“Both clients and service providers shall also wear face mask at all times and no group activities will be allowed,” he added.
TRAVEL GREEN LIST
Meanwhile, Mr. Roque said th etask force also updated the “green list” for travel. Fully vaccinated people from green or low-risk countries are allowed to enter the Philippines.
American Samoa, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Cayman Islands, Chad, Comoros, Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Falkland Islands (Malvinas), Hungary, Madagascar, Mali, Federated States of Micronesia, Montserrat, and New Zealand are now included in the green list, Mr. Roque said.
Niger, Northern Mariana Islands, Palau, Poland, Saba (Special Municipality of the Kingdom of Netherlands), Saint Pierre and Miquelon, Sierra Leone, Sint Eustatius, Taiwan, Algeria, Bhutan, Cook Islands, Eritrea, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, are also on the green list, he added.
Nauru, Nicaragua, Niue, North Korea, Saint Helena, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Sudan, Syria, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Tokelau, Tonga, Turkmenistan, Tuvalu, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, and Yemen are in the same travel list.
Philippine authorities earlier said travelers from green countries are required to undergo a seven-day facility-based quarantine.—Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza