GCQ AREAS REOPEN TODAY

MANILA — After two extensions of the enhanced community quarantine in Luzon,

some areas in the country will be placed starting today under a general

community quarantine (GCQ) where certain businesses like those in the

transport sector will be allowed back, though at a reduced capacity.

A one-meter distance between public transportation passengers, for example,

would be strictly implemented in areas where the quarantine measures are

relaxed, Malacañang said yesterday.

But the public transportation system remains suspended in high-risk areas or

those that remain under enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) until May 15.

The GCQ implementation will be governed by the guidelines released by the

Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF).

“The road, rail, maritime and aviation sectors of public transportation

shall operate at a reduced capacity in accordance with the guidelines issued

by the DOTr (Department of Transportation). Provided that in all public

transports, a strict one-meter distance between passengers shall be observed

and appropriate engineering controls in place,” explained presidential

spokesman Harry Roque at a press briefing.

DOTr undersecretary for administrative service Artemio Tuazon said all

drivers, conductors and commuters are required to wear face mask in order to

board a public utility vehicle (PUV). “No face mask, no boarding the PUVs,”

he stressed.

The use of an automatic fare collection system is also encouraged to limit

the amount of contact between the passengers and drivers. If this is not

available, passengers are required to pay first before riding the vehicle.

A regular disinfecting of all PUVs will have to be conducted before and

after every trip.

The allowable load capacity for buses, modern jeepneys and shuttle services

is at 50 percent.

Only two passengers will be allowed for taxis and TNVS and a maximum of two

passengers per row for the UV Express. Motorcycles taxis are still not

allowed.

Tricycles, on the other hand, will be subject to the consent of the local

government unit but there should only be one passenger.

The countryÂ’s trains will also be allowed to operate at only one fourth of

its capacity.

In the airplane, it wonÂ’t be just one seat apart because one meter will

clearly be every two seats if I’m not mistaken,” Roque said.

GOVÂ’T FINALIZES RULES FOR AREAS UNDER ENHANCED, GENERAL COMMUNITY QUARANTINE

The government issued on Thursday the varying degrees of quarantine

restrictions to be imposed in the country from May 1 to 15 to prevent the

further spread of COVID-19 in the Philippines.

President Rodrigo Duterte has approved the recommendations made by the

COVID-19 task force on rules to be imposed in areas under enhanced community

quarantine (ECQ) and general community quarantine (GCQ), Presidential

Spokesperson Harry Roque said.

The following high-risk areas will be placed under the strict ECQ for 15

days starting Friday:

- Metro Manila

- Central Luzon, except for Aurora

- Calabarzon

- Pangasinan

- Benguet, including Baguio City

- Iloilo, including Iloilo City

- Cebu, including Cebu City

- Bacolod City

- Davao City

All other provinces will be placed under the more relaxed GCQ.

Under the Luzon-wide enhanced community quarantine that will end on Friday,

strict stay-at-home rules are implemented, mass transportation is suspended,

and non-essential businesses remain closed to discourage people from going

out except for food, banking, and medical runs.

With the final guidelines, the same rules will apply, but slight tweaks were

made as to the businesses, sectors, and government work that were allowed to

resume operations.

Philippines tallied 8,488 confirmed COVID-19 infections, including 568

deaths and 1,043 recoveries.

ON LABOR DAY, DUTERTE REMINDS EMPLOYERS TO PROVIDE 'HUMANE WORKING

CONDITIONS' FOR FILIPINO WORKERS

MANILA- President Rodrigo Duterte reminded employers Friday to provide

humane working conditions to workers as the country marked Labor Day.

Duterte, who promised to stop "endo," said businesses have the shared

responsibility of providing workers with stable career opportunities.

"Endo" refers to the cyclical hiring and firing of workers to do away with

regularizing them with full benefits.

"I thus remind everyone in the business sector of their shared

responsibility in improving the lives of our workers by providing them

stable career opportunities and humane working conditions," the President

said in his Labor Day message.

The President reiterated his administration's commitment to safeguarding the

rights of workers.

"I take this occasion to reaffirm the governmentÂ’s commitment to uphold the

dignity of labor by safeguarding the rights of our workers through the

humanization of laws and the equalization of social forces," he said.

"As all work is vital in forging a more inclusive and more progressive

Philippines, may each and every Filipino rightfully enjoy the fruits of

their labor and lead more productive and dignified lives," he added.

GUIDELINES FOR AREAS UNDER GCQ STARTING MAY 1, 2020

Government workers

Work in government offices may be at full operational capacity or under

alternative work arrangements in accordance with Civil Service Commission

rules

Category I industries that are allowed to work at full operational capacity

(work from home or other arrangements also allowed)

"Agriculture, fishery, and forestry industries, food manufacturing and food

supply chain businesses, including food retail establishments such as

supermarkets, grocery stores, and food preparation establishments insofar as

take-out and delivery services, food delivery services, health-related

establishments, the logistics sector, information technology and

telecommunication companies, media"

Category II industries allowed to work "between 50% capacity up to full

operational capacity" (work from home or other arrangements also allowed)

"Mining and other manufacturing, export-oriented, and electronic commerce

companies, as well as other delivery, repair and maintenance, and housing

and office services"

Category III industries allowed to operate at a maximum of 50% working on

site (work from home or other arrangements also allowed)

"Financial services, BPOs, legal and accounting, and auditing services,

professional, scientific, technical, and other non-leisure services, and

other

non-leisure wholesale and retail establishments"

Other industries

"Limited operations in malls and shopping centers shall be allowed,except

for leisure establishments and services which shall continue to be closed"

Essential public and private construction projects are allowed

Amusement, gaming, and fitness establishments and businesses in the kids and

tourism industry are NOT ALLOWED to operate

Except for Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators, which are for gambling but

that presidential spokesperson Harry Roque says are like BPOs, if you think

about it.

Hotels are allowed to accommodate guests with existing booking

accommodations for:

-foreigners

-guests with existing long-term bookings

-distressed OFWs and stranded Filipinos or foreign nationals

-people undergoing mandatory quarantine

-healthcare workers and employees of exempted establishments

GUIDELINES ON MOVEMENT IN GCQ AREAS

-All persons are mandated to wear face masks or "earloop masks, indigenous,

reusable, do-it-yourself masks, or face shields, handkerchiefs, or such

other protective equipment or any combination thereof, which can effectively

lessen the transmission of COVID-19"

-Movement is limited to accessing essential goods and services "and for work

in the offices or industries permitted to operate."

-Movement for leisure purposes is prohibited

-People who are 21 years old and below or who are 60 years old and above as

well as those considered more at risk from COVID-19 "except when

indispensable" and only for essential movement

-Road, rail, maritime and aviation sectors of public transportation will

operate at reduced capacity, "provided that in all public transport, a

strict one-meter distance between passengers shall be observed."

-Essential work gatherings and religious activities may continue provided

that there is strict maintenance of at least two-meter distance between and

among those attending.

DOLE TO CONTINUE LOCKDOWN AID FOR WORKERS AFTER FUND SHORTAGE: PALACE

The labor department will continue programs to help workers cope with

lockdown measures to contain the COVID-19 pandemic, President Rodrigo

Duterte's spokesperson said Friday.

These programs include the COVID-19 Adjustment Measures Program (CAMP) for

informal sector workers and Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating

Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers (TUPAD) for those outside areas that are not

under extended enhanced community quarantine.

"Iyong mga programa ng DOLE na natigil na dahil sa kawalan ng pondo

ipagpapatuloy po. Ito po'y maliit na paraan para ipakita sa ating mga

manggagawa ang kanilang halaga sa atin," Presidential Spokesman Harry Roque

told DZMM.

The DOLE said Wednesday it realigned P1.5 billion of its 2020 budget to give

P5,0000 to an additional 300,000 CAMP beneficiaries.

TUPAD will start in May using a separate P1 billion worth of realigned funds

of the labor department, it said.

LABOR DAY RALLY SITES EMPTY AS WORKERS TAKE PROTEST ONLINE

Major thoroughfares typically choked with Labor Day protesters were empty on

Friday as workers took their grievances online while Metro Manila and other

high-risk areas remained under lockdown to contain the COVID-19 pandemic.

The DZMM news team spotted only policemen and checkpoint officers at the

Elliptical Road and Welcome Rotonda in Quezon City, where labor groups

typically gathered before marching towards Mendiola Street in neighboring

Manila for May 1 rallies in previous years.

Defend Jobs Philippines earlier urged workers to wear their uniforms on

Friday, take a selfie with a placard of their complaints and post the photo

on social media with the hashtags #VirtualLaborDayMarch and #NasaanAngAyuda

(where is the aid).

IATF APPROVES RESUMPTION OF POGO OPERATIONS

Offshore gaming operations will resume operations to help in the

government's response to the COVID-19 crisis, PAGCOR chairman Andrea Domingo

says.

Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque also confirms this, noting that only

30% of offshore gaming workers may go back to work.

Roque added that online gaming services are part of the BPOs, which cater to

markets outside the country.

THE REST

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CASH AID DISTRIBUTION DEADLINE EXTENDED BY 7 DAYS

MANILA — The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) has

given local government units (LGUs) one more week to distribute the

emergency cash assistance to households affected by the enhanced community

quarantine.

In allowing the extension, the DILG said it was impossible for the LGUs to

meet the deadline due to the high number of beneficiaries in their areas.

DILG Secretary Eduardo Año yesterday said some LGUs could finish the

distribution of the first tranche of the cash subsidy yesterday, but they

might have violated social distancing rules.

“This is an acknowledgment that our LGUs are working.

But physically and mathematically, itÂ’s really impossible to distribute

because of the huge number of families within their jurisdiction,” Año said.

“We’ll be providing them seven days extension. And for other LGUs with

problems, four days extension. And they have to liquidate immediately so the

second tranche of the aid can be prepared,” he said.

Among the LGUs that were given a one-week extension are those in Metro

Manila, Bulacan, Cavite, Cebu City, Rizal, Davao City and Laguna.

MARIKINA STARTS FREE COVID-19 TESTING

MANILA - Marikina City on Friday will start screening its residents for the

novel coronavirus for free after the health department accredited its

testing laboratory following weeks of delay, Mayor Marcelino Teodoro said.

The testing starting at 8 a.m. will prioritize residents with symptoms of

and exposure to carriers of the disease, and frontliners, medical workers

and local officials in charge of handing out cash aid, said Teodoro.

The city government will waive for residents the testing fee, which usually

runs from P3,500 to P5,000 at private facilities.

Neighboring towns and cities can also use the laboratory for free if they

provide their own test kits.

"Tingin ko malaking tulong ito para doon sa mga marginalized nating

kababayan, iyong mga walang-wala na tipong hindi makapagpagamot,

makapagpakonsulta dahil nag-aalala, walang pambayad," he told DZMM.

The Marikina government has 8,000 to 10,000 test kits from the University of

the Philippines-National Institutes for Health, which also helped develop

the P3.8-million laboratory.

The lab's machine can process 98 specimens per 2 to 3-hour run, said

Teodoro.

Residents may call hotline 161 to consult city doctors, who will determine

whether or not authorities should collect their samples for testing, he

added.

Marikina has 103 COVID-19 patients so far and the tally could spike with its

mass testing, said the mayor.

ILOILO CITY EYES MORE CORONAVIRUS TESTING CENTERS

MANILA - The local government of Iloilo City on Friday said they are working

towards the accreditation of three more hospitals as coronavirus disease

2019 (COVID-19) testing centers.

"We are pushing for one more government hospital to be accredited here in

Western Visayas and 2 private hospitals also, which are interested," Iloilo

City Jerry Treñas told ANC's Headstart.

Treñas said the Western Visayas Medical Center already services specimen

coming from the whole region, including Palawan and Romblon.

"You can imagine how many specimens come in every day," he said.

He urged the Department of Health and the Research Institute for Tropical

Medicine (RITM) to use the remaining days of the extended enhanced community

quarantine to accredit more medical facilities around the country.

‘SENIORS CAN GO TO WORK, BUY GOODS’

MANILA — Senior citizens actively working or who are on an errand for

essential goods are allowed to go out during the quarantine period, the

Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said yesterday.

Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez made the clarification in a Viber message

yesterday after the Employers Confederation of the Philippines (ECOP) and

lawmakers raised concern over the possible imposition of a quarantine rule

prohibiting senior citizens and people below 20 years old from leaving their

homes.

“IATF (Inter-Agency Task Force on the Management of Emerging Infectious

Diseases) is not insisting seniors would be under house arrest,” Lopez said.

He said the IATF presented the plan to have senior citizens or those 60

years old and above stay home, citing their vulnerability to coronavirus

disease 2019 or COVID-19 especially during quarantine periods.

He said senior citizens with work or those running businesses would be

allowed to go out of their homes. The government would be issuing IDs for

these senior citizens.

“We’re also allowing of course, those needing medical check up procedures,

buying food, medicines,” Lopez said.

IATF RETHINKS ALLOWING RELIGIOUS ACTIVITIES IN GCQ AREAS

The Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious

Diseases will discuss whether or not religious activities will be allowed to

resume in areas under General Community Quarantine, presidential spokesman

Harry Roque says.

News5 reports that this is in response to complaints that the IATF received

over its decision to allow religious activities when people are supposed to

be practicing physical distancing.

MORE INMATES FREED

MANILA — The Supreme Court yesterday reduced bail and eased other

requirements for poor inmates to decongest jails amid the surge of COVID-19

cases in detention facilities.

According to Chief Justice Diosdado Peralta, the high court released a total

of 9,731 inmates from March 17 to April 29.

Peralta noted that the inmates have to be arraigned first before they are

released.

The legal proceeding is being done online, Peralta said.

ENTERTAINMENT & LIFESTYLE

SHARON CUNETA TO HOLD BENEFIT CONCERT FOR MOTHER'S DAY

MANILA — Veteran singer-actress Sharon Cuneta will be holding an online

concert dedicated to all mothers this May.

The fundraising concert dubbed “Sharon: Love and Music, A Mother’s Day

Special,” is for the benefit of ABS-CBN's Pantawid ng Pag-Ibig program.

Cuneta will be accompanied by “Tawag ng Tanghalan” hurado Louie Ocampo.

It will be stream live on ABS-CBN's Facebook page, YouTube channel, and

website (?ent.abs-cbn.com?) on ?May 10 at 8 p.m?.

SPORTS

PLAYER AGENTS, EXECUTIVES CALL FOR NBA TO CANCEL SEASON, SAYS REPORT

NBA executives and player agents are calling on the league to cancel the

remainder of the 2019-20 season due to health concerns over the novel

coronavirus outbreak, CNBC reported on Thursday.

Even as many states in the U.S. begin to ease stay-at-home restrictions and

open up the economy, cracks are beginning to show in the NBA's resolve to

complete the campaign and crown a champion, according to CNBC.

Talking to executives and agents, CNBC said team owners are concerned with

liability issues and are conflicted about whether or not to give up on the

current season.

The NBA and National Basketball Players Association (NBAPA) has agreed to

withhold 25% of playersÂ’ pay starting next month.

With that issue resolved CNBC reported that many owners have no desire to

return because other sources of revenue are down and despite a massive media

rights deal, teams are still reporting losses.

One person told CNBC a western conference team has already lost roughly $50

million this season and doesnÂ’t have much incentive to restart the campaign.

“What (owners) are saying is, ’If we return, where is the revenue that is

going to justify the additional cost of returning?'," one team executive

said.

“They are looking at the cost side versus the revenue side. What revenue

comes in now?”

Despite the reservations, the NBA has given every indication it plans to

complete the current campaign.

The league announced this week it would soon unveil rule changes that will

allow teams to open their practice facilities for players to take part in

treatment and limited workouts.

There is no set date for when facilities can open, though the league advised

teams that it is targeting no earlier than May 8. The NBA was the first of

North America's major sports to suspend play after a Utah Jazz player tested

positive for the coronavirus on March 11.

The decision created a domino effect with many league and sports quickly

following the NBA lead and cancelling or postponing seasons.

A number of scenarios of how the NBA might be able to restart have been

floated, including centralizing teams in Las Vegas or the Bahamas and

playing games in empty arenas.

INDICATORS

FOREX $1 = P 50.40

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Morality is of the highest importance - but for us, not for God. - Albert

Einstein