DTI to shut down firms ignoring COVID-19 rules

CEBU, Philippines — Food establishments are warned not to violate the anti-COVID protocols otherwise they will be ordered closed.

Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Assistant Secretary Asteria Caberte made the stern warning to businesses in the food service industry.

Caberte, in a statement, said eateries in Cebu City, which is under the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ), is not allowed to accept dine-in.

But they can accept take-out orders, she said.

Also, she said that all dine-in restaurants, fast foods, small eateries or karenderyas in areas under the general community quarantine (GCQ) must follow the health guidelines set by the department.

The DTI Guidelines, which are in consonance with the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of the Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF- MEID), include among others that the dine-in capacity must be at 30 percent for GCQ areas.

Also included in the DTI guidelines for dine-in eateries are the physical distancing, wearing of face masks, checking of temperature, providing sanitizers, and observing the “no mask, no entry” policy.

Meanwhile, DTI will no longer issue a Certificate of Exemption for unhampered movement of delivery vehicles carrying cargoes and essential supplies in Cebu.

This as not to duplicate the efforts initiated by the local government units with regard to the certification.

In line with Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu’s efforts in addressing COVID-19 contagion in the province, DTI is supporting the Cebu provincial government in its endeavor to “reinstitute the strict controls of borders defined by the city of Mandaue in the north, city of Talisay in the south, municipality of Balamban in the west and municipality of Cordova in the island of Mactan.”

With this, DTI-7 said all passes of cargo vehicles passing through the municipalities and cities of Cebu province shall, henceforth, be issued by the provincial government.

Cimatu, together with the provincial and some local government units, adopted the Inter Agency Task Force’s (IATF) COVID-19 approach of closing the borders to prevent the virus from further spreading throughout Cebu.

The IATF- MEID has recommended an ECQ status for Cebu City from June 15 to 30, 2020.  KQD (FREEMAN)