This Week in Palawan (November 30 to December 6, 2020)

A new resolution from the provincial board reminds local government units to avoid holding Christmas parties and events during the upcoming holiday season as the entire world continues to face an ongoing pandemic. The author of the resolution, board member Eduardo Modesto Rodriquez, said that government employees should be mindful of the existing health protocols such as physical distancing [1].

New safety and health protocols are set by the Incident Management Team (IMT) as Puerto Princesa City prepares for tourism reopening. During a seminar last November 18, Dr. Eunice Ponce de Leon-Herrera listed the updated safety protocols that will take effect to maintain the safety of tourists and locals [2].

According to the new guidelines, protocols will include the improvement of social distancing, wearing of face masks and shields, provision of sanitation essentials in establishments, and implementation of one-way traffic for customers in establishments. In addition, the guidelines also call for the provision of isolation spaces for individuals showing COVID-19 symptoms and for proper personal protective equipment (PPE) for staff and employees, as well as a proper area for donning and doffing of PPEs. Facilities are also required to assemble a contact tracing team. The new guidelines will be finalized in alignment with the Inter-Agency Task Force’s (IATF) health protocols.

The IATF announced that they will no longer require on-flight isolation spaces for domestic flights as recommended by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP), Department of Health (DOH), and the Department of Transportation (DOTr). According to Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque, the decision was based on information regarding COVID-19 transmission and improved health protocols for air travel [3].

Roque added that the flights should not exceed 1.5 hours for domestic flights. LGUs are also asked to ease some restrictions and health protocols for the airline crew. Airline crew would also be staying in accredited hotels and will be exempted from COVID-19 testing upon arrival.

A study conducted by the Institute of Popular Opinion of the University of Mindanao shows that Puerto Princesa City is the third most liveable city in the Philippines, just behind Lucena City and Davao City [4]. The “Livability Index of Philippine Cities” conducted by Dr. John Vianne Murcia lists four factors that makes a city liveable: social, economic, governance, and physical.

According to the study, Puerto Princesa ranked 5th in the physical category, 8th place in governance, 18th in social, and 25th in economic. Beyond the four categories, Dr. Murcia also stated several of Puerto Princesa’s advantages over the other 32 urbanized cities in the Philippines: forest cover, employment rate, population density, road density, average humidity, crime efficiency index, and IRA per capita. The study hopes to inspire the government and politicians to improve the quality of living in their cities for the benefit of their constituents.

Puerto Princesa Mayor Lucilo Bayron urged the public to spend their holiday bonuses on local brands and businesses in order to boost economic activities in the city. Malls and markets in the city are also urged to hold sales [5]. Bayron also plans to increase economic activities in the city this December 2020 by conducting activities to benefit the business sector. To ensure the safety of shoppers, the city government also deployed COVID-19 marshals and barangay officials in establishments like public markets, malls, supermarkets, talipapas, and other public spaces.

The Palawan Electric Cooperative (PALECO) launched a new program for their members called the “iTEXT mo Kay RECo,” which lets consumers text their concerns to PALECO. On their Facebook page, PALECO listed the issue code numbers for common concerns that customers may face like loose connection and broken transformers.

To contact PALECO, customers can type RECO<space>[issue code #]<space>[pole number]<space>[street]<space> and sent to 09176767433 for Globe/TM subscribers and 09209632878 for SMART/Sun subscribers. The first 200 verified reports per month may also receive free load [6].

November 30 is Bonifacio Day, which is a national regular holiday. On this day, work in private and government offices are closed [7].

Go to Yoorekka for more COVID-19 updates in Palawan.