Quarantine passes back in Valenzuela

MANILA, Philippines — New quarantine passes will be distributed to households in Valenzuela City during the reimposition of the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) , Mayor Rex Gatchalian announced yesterday.

Barangay officials will deliver the quarantine passes to every household for free, Gatchalian said on Facebook.

The quarantine pass should be used by the head of the family when going out to buy food and other essentials, according to Gatchalian.

He reminded residents to still bring their QR code passes generated by the city’s contact tracing app ValTrace, which will be required before entering business establishments.

No walk-ins in Caloocan

In Caloocan, walk-ins are no longer allowed at the vaccination sites except for senior citizens, Mayor Oscar Malapitan said yesterday.

The local government will implement a “pre-listing system” in the barangays for an efficient vaccination drive, Malapitan said.

He urged residents to register at barangay halls for available vaccination slots.

Malapitan advised the public not to line up at the vaccination sites without a schedule.

Cash, food aid

Meanwhile, informal workers urged the government to fast-track the distribution of cash and food aid ahead of the ECQ.

Together with the EcoWaste Coalition, informal workers in Caloocan, Malabon and Manila appealed for assistance amid the government’s stay-at-home directive.

The EcoWaste said the reimposition of ECQ should be matched with the provision of aid so that daily wage earners could put food on the table.

The group also asked the government to ramp up vaccinations during the 14-day lockdown amid the threat of the COVID-19 Delta variant. – Rhodina Villanueva