Yesterday, the Philippine government announced that Metro Manila, Laguna, and Cebu City will be under a modified enhanced quarantine (MECQ) from May 16, 2020 until the end of the month.
The MECQ was not one of the scenarios presented by the Metro Manila Council (MMC) to the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases over the weekend. Naturally, since it was the first time authorities brought up the acronym, people were unsure what to make of the news.
To help shed light on the MECQ, we released an explainer tackling the measure following yesterday’s Malacañang press briefing. Earlier today, though, presidential spokesperson Harry Roque went on air and released guidelines regarding the opening of establishments under MECQ.
Basically, stores and services are looking at three scenarios right now: a) They are not allowed to open; b) they may open, but with only 50% of their workforce on site; or, c) they may open and operate, but must follow safety protocols.
Under MECQ, non-leisure establishments inside malls and commercial centers may open with only 50% of their workforce. Restaurants, meanwhile, may open with half their workforce present for takeout and delivery only. Need a haircut? Too bad, because barbershops will remain closed under ECQ—the same goes for those who want to hit the gym, the library, or the movie theater. Strangely, toy stores are permitted to open provided they only have 50% of their workforce on site.
You can check out the full breakdown below:
MECQ Store Operation Guidelines
Spread the word. What do you think of these guidelines? Let us know in the comments.
