City bans minors in malls, businesses close at 8 PM

TAGBILARAN CITY, Bohol, March 19, (PIA)—With the 9 PM to 5 AM curfew imposed all over Bohol, malls and commercial establishments, including balut vendors in Tagbilaran City are now directed to limit their daily operations up to 8:00 PM only.

And not only that, through Tagbilaran City Executive Order No 11, series of 2020 declaring a state of general community quarantine in the City of Tagbilaran and providing guidelines for its implementation says, anyone below 18 years old is prohibited from entering malls unless for emergency cases.

The business operations closure order however does not include the operation of pharmacies, medical centers and other health care establishments.

It also enjoins owners and operators of internet cafes, karaoke TV bars, movie houses and other places of leisure and entertainment to close their operations on March 19 until April 12, 202.

City Mayor John Geesnell Yap, through this EO, dated March 17, also mandated private establishments here to have mobile temperature scanning devices at all their entry points in their premises and should have liquid soap or hand sanitizers and 70 percent alcohol in the restrooms and common areas.

The move is on the pretext that the spread of the dreaded corona virus disease can be stopped by hand washing and depriving the virus of a host that social distancing can ably do.

If in the temperature scanning areas, an individual whose body heat exceeds 37.5 degrees centigrade, the person would be denied entry and advised to seek immediate medical care, and directed to the nearest health care provider.

Through the order, the city has also asked organizers of mass gatherings including cockfights, concerts, fiesta celebrations be they public or private to either cancel or postpone in an assertion of the health doctrine of social distancing.

As Bohol governor Arthur Yap issues Executive Order No. 13 to impose a province-wide curfew, Tagbilaran City moves and enhances the curfew with its provision of health checkpoints in all entry points to the city.

If at these checkpoints, health personnel manning the checkpoint find out that an individual has a body temperature exceeding 37.5, the individual is placed in a holding area and another round of temperature check is done after another few minutes.

If the same high temperature remains, the individual is sent to a qualified health care personnel or referred to the city’s Barangay Health Emergency Response Team (BHERT), or if non-resident, the checkpoint personnel will contact the municipal Health Emergency Team to pick the individual for possible self-quarantine.  

Over this, Tagbilaran City residents are strongly advised to stay in their homes, go out only to report to work, buy food, medicines and needed supplies or go for treatment.

No one should be in the malls, community centers, commercial areas and public areas just to hang out or loiter, the executive order states.

Government work, however is not disrupted, and the city has opted to implement alternative working arrangements. (rahchiu/PIA-7/Bohol)

NASAL SPRAY. Doctors here in Tagbilaran teach people how to make nasal sprays while a benevolent group gave nasal sprays to those whi allergic rhinitis as the city bids to end the problem of civid 19 quick. (PIABohol/foto by May Hope Arcenal)

MILITARY MEDICAL SOLUTION. While a curfew has been held over Bohol, Tagbilaran City puts in a twist with a medical team imbedded in the checkpoints, they are tasked to get temperature readings and deny entry to the city people who are potential virus carriers. (rahchiu/PIA-7/Bohol file photo)