Immediate Arrest for Cebu City ECQ Violators

No more warnings will be given to the Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) violators in Cebu City as they will now be immediately arrested, said Philippine National Police (PNP) Chief Archie Gamboa on Monday, June 29, 2020.

This new directive comes as the area is steadily emerging as the new coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) epicenter in the country.

The PNP Chief however, said that majority of Cebu City’s residents follow quarantine protocols with only a few violators.

“But generally, ang behavior ng mga Cebuano, sumunod naman sila pero may mangilan-ngilan na pasaway. (But generally, Cebuanos are compliant but there are a few who are really stubborn). Majority follows the quarantine imposition of Cebu,” Gamboa told reporters in a press conference in Camp Crame.

To curb the further transmission of COVID-19 and help in the implementation of ECQ protocols, at least 250 police forces and Special Action Forces (SAF) from neighboring regions have augmented police operations in the city in addition to 500 to 600 reserved forces, Gamboa said.

Cebu City was reverted to ECQ, the strictest among quarantine classifications in the country, last June 16 following a surge of coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) infections.

Based on data from the Department of Health (DOH), Cebu City has the highest number of Covid-19 cases compared to other cities with 4,962 with 156 total deaths and 2,599 total recoveries as of June 29. (GFB)