The lifting of the face mask rule in Cebu province is “not recognized” by the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) as Interior Secretary Eduardo Año said Friday police may arrest individuals in the province who violate health protocols “if necessary.”
The Department of Health (DOH) also stressed that face masks should still be worn outside and in public places amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Cebu Governor Gwen Garcia earlier issued an executive order lifting the face mask rule in open spaces.
The DOH said it was not consulted regarding Garcia’s executive order.
The DILG said “the guidelines of the (national) COVID-19 task force should prevail since these have been approved by President Rodrigo Duterte,” ABS-CBN News reported.
“Current [Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases] protocols allow only for specific instances when masks can be taken off, such as when eating or during certain well-ventilated sports and activities,” Año said in the report.
“This Department does not recognize the Executive Order issued by Cebu Governor Gwen Garcia because we have the IATF Guidelines approved by the President,” he added.
Garcia’s Executive Order 16 said that face masks would be required only in closed and air-conditioned areas. “The use of face masks shall be optional in well-ventilated and open spaces,” the order read.
Health Undersecretary and spokesperson Maria Rosario Vergeire said it is not yet time to lift the policy on wearing face masks because COVID-19 pandemic has not ended.
Vergeire said the DOH is currently coordinating with the DILG regarding the executive order issued by Garcia.
According to Vergeire, agencies should consult first with the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases regarding this because the IATF is the one implementing such policies nationwide in the fight against COVID-19.
Meanwhile, face mask mandates should not be lifted as the COVID-19 pandemic is still not over, a doctor said Friday.
“A face mask is still protection. The pandemic is not yet over, so we think face masks must not be taken off in crowded places,” Dr. Antonio Dans told TeleRadyo.
He noted that other countries saw a surge in cases when they no longer made face masks mandatory.
“The cases are going down but we must not get rid of the precautionary measures, preventive measures because it’s still there and in some countries, there is a surge of cases again,” he said.
The doctor said mask mandates may be lifted when cases remain low for an extended period of time and fewer deaths are recorded.
For now, he said the public should continue to follow minimum public health standards.
“Continue the preventive measures. We always talk about the 4 preventive measures): make sure of air circulation, physical distancing, always wear your protective equipment, atsaka keep the time of your interaction low. It’s still the same, it hasn’t changed, the preventive measures,” Dans said.