- MITCH M. LIPA
Negros Occidental will soon open its borders to travelers going to and from Negros Oriental and Cebu.
But passengers taking public transport will have to comply with the protocols set by the provincial government such as the presentation of a negative RT-PCR test result valid within 72 hours after extraction before boarding bus.
Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson said the Capitol will also require travelers to fill up the S-Pass or special passenger permit that will indicate his destination and notify the local government unit of his arrival.
The same travel protocols are being applied for passengers coming from Metro Manila and other parts of the country, Lacson said.
Lacson said only passengers within Western Visayas are not covered by the rules.
Provincial Administrator Rayfrando Diaz is set discuss the protocols and related policies, such as compliance to Resolution 101 of the National IATF, with public transport operators.
The Vallacar Transit Inc., which operates Ceres buses plying the Bacolod-Dumaguete and Bacolod-Cebu routes, said it willing to comply with the requirement before accepting passengers from other parts of the Visayas, particularly those coming from Central Visayas or Region 7.
VTI media relations manager Jade Marquez-Seballos said the company’s terminal managers in Bacolod, Dumaguete and Cebu are already discussing uniform protocols as required by the LGU, other government agencies and the NIATF.
As soon as the system is in place, Seballos said, they will seek approval from the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board that they will be allowed to again open the Bacolod-Dumaguete-Cebu routes.
The decision to determine how many buses will be allowed to operate also rests on the LTFRB, she said.
Lacson also said he will honor the previous agreements between San Carlos City and Vallahermoso as well as Kabankalan and Mabinay that allow residents from their respective LGUs to cross the borders and stay for specific number of hours.
There will be no quarantine period for arriving passengers and the isolation facility will only be used for asymptomatic patients and their close contacts, who are under observation, based Executive Order No. 21-18 issued by Lacson last March 13, 2021. – MML
