The entry of Negrenses to Cebu will be regulated starting June 14, Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia said.
Garcia, in an executive order she issued dated June 12, said that persons originating from Negros Oriental and Occidental, as well as Bohol, who will enter Cebu through any of its ports, will be required to present a negative RT-PCR test result, taken 72 hours before departure, and a negative Rapid Antigen test result taken at least 48 hours from their points of origin.
The EO takes effect 12:01 a.m. of June 14 until June 24, unless extended.
Garcia said that employees of the Department of Health is charged with the responsibility of conducting rapid antigen in all ports of origin upon all persons travelling to Cebu province, with the Philippine Ports Authority and Coast Guard to assist them in screening persons entering her province.
The DOH, Garcia said, reported a steady rise in the number of COVID-19 cases in Negros Oriental, which ranked second among 128 provinces and cities, in terms of the number of active cases.
The decision to heighten restrictions upon all persons entering Cebu, she added, was concurred in by the DOH, the Department of Interior and Local Government, and the Office of the Presidential Assistant for the Visayas.
Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson is also expected to issue an order on June 14 to ban non-essential travel from Negros Oriental to Negros Occidental.
Lacson’s EO will also include the closure of all beach and mountain resorts during the Feast of St. John the Baptist on June 24 to 26.
Mayor Salvador Escalante Jr., meanwhile, issued an EO prohibiting all forms of social and mass gatherings, and temporarily suspending the permits of all resorts operating in beaches, rivers, lakes, and parts in Cadiz City.
Escalante, however, said that places of religious worship may continue to admit believers but only at 30 percent of the venue capacity. – GB
