BY DOMINIQUE GABRIEL BAÑAGA
BACOLOD City – Relaxing curfew hours enforced to stem the spread of coronavirus disease 2019 would be a move in the wrong direction, according to Councilor Archie Baribar, citing spike of infections in the city.
Baribar, the author of the city’s current curfew ordinance, deemed it prudent to maintain the current 10 p.m. to 4 a.m. curfew hours.
He opposed the proposal submitted by the Metro Bacolod Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MBCCI) to shorten curfew hours in the city.
“Relaxing the curfew would not be possible at the moment,” he stressed.
The current curfew in the city should even be tightened further to reduce the possibility of local transmissions, Baribar pointed out.
He appealed to the local business leaders for understanding, saying the current curfew ordinance could be amended only when the city is placed under the “new normal” status.
Last week, MBCCI chief executive officer Frank Carbon, said they drafted a letter to Vice Mayor El Cid Familiaran urging the city government to relax the current 10 p.m. to 4 a.m. curfew “for some establishments to operate during the late evening hours.”
Hoping the city government would listen to their proposal, Carbon said letting some of business establishments to operate in the evening hours would increase sales and at the same time bring in additional income for the city government itself.
In a follow-up interview, Vice Mayor El Cid Familiaran said the Sangguniang Panlungsod will review the proposal submitted to them by Carbon, and they will discuss the matter with Mayor Evelio Leonardia.
Under the MBCCI’s proposal they are seeking to move the curfew hours to 12 a.m. to 4 a.m./PN
