The Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) on Thursday, May 20, 2021, noted that the Metro Manila Council has allowed religious gatherings at 30% venue capacity.
The IATF earlier allowed religious gatherings up to 10% of the venue capacity under the General Community Quarantine with heightened restrictions.
Local government units, however, are given the discretion to increase the venue capacity of religious gatherings as long as these would not exceed the 30% allowable venue capacity.
The IATF likewise considered the 9th Meeting of the ASEAN Plus Three Emergency Rice Reserve of the National Food Authority as essential gathering and approved its conduct.
Also allowed to resume are the relocation activities of the Department of Public Works and Highways for affected informal settlers in connection with their construction projects, in accordance with existing laws and ordinances, and subject to safety and health protocols and strict observance of minimum public health standards.
The IATF further approved the recommendations of the National Economic and Development Authority to scale up the contact tracing applications of various local government units, such as the ones used by Pasig, Mandaluyong, Antipolo, Valenzuela, among others. In this regard, the Department of Information and Communication Technology and the Department of the Interior and Local Government have been directed to issue a policy to ensure all contact tracing applications are interoperable.
Meanwhile, the request of the Philippine Swimming Incorporated to host the 2021 Swimming National Selection Meet under a bubble-type format at the New Clark City Aquatics Center, Capas, Tarlac is approved. In this connection, the delegates of the National Selection Meet shall be considered as Authorized Persons Outside of Residence and shall be allowed interzonal travel.
Also, athletes bound for the Tokyo Olympics and the South East Asian Games may commence with their bubble-type training, subject to the applicable guidelines of the Philippine Sports Commission, the Games and Amusement Board and the Department of Health.
Related to this, the IATF approved the Technical Working Group’s recommendation to the Interim National Immunization Technical Advisory Group (iNITAG) to prioritize the vaccination of athletes, coaches, delegates and officials bound for the Tokyo Olympics and the South East Asian Games.
Also, on vaccination, the frontline employees of the business process outsourcing industry and the frontline employees of the Commission on Elections have been recommended to iNITAG to be included in the Priority Group A4.
On the other hand, liquefied petroleum gas dealers, retailers and attendants now form part of the approved Priority Group A4.2 for vaccine deployment under the “retail trade operators and frontliners.”
Finally, a Small Working Group was created to study and formulate protocols for inbound international travel of fully vaccinated individuals to be chaired by the Department of Tourism and co-chaired by the Department of Foreign Affairs.
–From Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque
