The imposition of curfew hours in Negros Occidental will be lifted on June 1, said Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson.
Lacson said the lifting of curfew hours is in response to the clamor of the business sector and after the consultation with the local chief executives in the province.
Earlier, Bacolod City Mayor Evelio Leonardia lifted the 12 midnight to 4 a.m. curfew hours in the city, through an Executive Order that took effect May 24.
Asked if the implementation of curfew hours helped in preventing the spread of COVID-19 cases, Lacson replied, “ I’d like to think that all our policies contributed to addressing the pandemic, in terms of lowering the number of cases”.
“But we can do more, through the conduct of vaccination,” the governor added.
Amid the decision to lift the curfew hours, COVID-19 cases in Negros Occidental rose to 31 active cases on May 25. Previously, cases were in single digit.
Lacson said that Provincial Health Officer, Dr. Ernell Tumimbang, wants to investigate the cause of the increase in the number of cases.
Health experts earlier warned of a possible surge in COVID-19 cases, after the campaign period for the May 9 elections.
Meanwhile, the 8-day provincial government initiated vaccination activities has been set Thursdays and Fridays of June, and on Monday and Tuesday in the last week of next month.
The vaccination drive aims to increase the number of vaccinated Negrenses.
Tumimbang earlier reported that 74 percent of the 1.8 million Negrenses targeted for inoculation had been fully vaccinated.
The provincial government of Negros Occidental is also returning to a 5-day work week starting June, after almost two years of adopting a four-day-work and work-from-home arrangement on the fifth day of the week./GB
