We wish to inform that the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) on Thursday, October 8, 2020, approved the health and safety protocols for the conduct of a plebiscite in the first quarter of 2021 to ratify the Division of the Province of Palawan, pursuant to Republic Act No. 11259 and relevant provisions of the Constitution. These include the period of voting over the course of two days and five voters in the room at any particular time.
Registered voters between the ages of 18 and 21 years old and those who are 60 years old and above, those with immunodeficiency, comorbidity, or other health risks, and pregnant women shall be exempt from mobility restrictions for the purpose of voting. Meanwhile, the Commission on Elections is encouraged to devise safety mechanisms and procedures so confirmed COVID-19 and / or symptomatic patients can exercise their right to vote.
As we move towards ingat buhay para sa hanapbuhay, we likewise inform that face-to-face trainings and assessments by Technical Vocational Institutions (TVIs) and TESDA Technology Institutions (TTIs) in areas for outbound overseas Filipino workers under General Community Quarantine (GCQ) or lower shall be permitted, subject to compliance with TESDA Guidelines and minimum public health standards. This forms part of our assistance to workers who already have employment opportunities. These include trainings and assessments for domestic work, caregiver, housekeeping qualifications and ship’s catering.
We further state that dive establishments in specific areas under GCQ and Modified General Community Quarantine (MGCQ), such as in Batangas and other areas as may identified by the Department of Tourism (DOT), may accept recreational divers as guests, who are from areas under GCQ or lower. The DOT shall issue the necessary guidelines in coordination and consultation with the Department of the Interior and Local Government, the Philippine National Police and the identified local government units.
Finally, the IATF directed its sub-Technical Working Groups on Data Analytics and Anticipatory and Forward Planning to convene a meeting to formulate unified recommendations concerning guidelines applicable to areas that may eventually placed under the New Normal, which will be aligned to the proposed National Action Plan Phase III of the National Task Force Against COVID-19, which is assigned to craft a unified long-term plan. The meeting will be composed of health expert panels from the Department of Health Technical Advisory Group, the Health Care Professionals’ Alliance Against COVID-19 as well as economic experts to balance health and economy.
