The Coronavirus disease (Covid) pandemic has changed the way we do things. This is true to our usual way of observing All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day.
This year, people are barred from visiting their departed loved ones buried in their final resting place as part of the commemoration of the two (2) religious activities.
In his Executive Order No. 48, Gov. Arthur Yap orders the closure of cemeteries in the entire province from Oct. 31 to Nov. 3, 2020.
“All public and private cemeteries shall be closed to the public from 31 October 2020 to 03 November 2020 to avoid congregation and congestion of people who traditionally flock to the cemeteries during those dates. The Boholano population is encouraged to pay homage and respects to their dearly departed prior to and/or after those dates. Masses and religious services during those dates shall be allowed in churches subject to the allowed capacity and following strict health and safety standards and protocols,” the governor said in his executive order.
The order is not surprising considering that even if Bohol is under modified general community quarantine (MGCQ), mass gatherings are still not allowed as a measure to prevent the spread of the virus responsible for Covid.
In recent months, fiestas which mass gathering, were disallowed, as local government units ordered lockdowns. The lockdowns are meant to prevent people from other places to enter the town holding its fiesta celebration. Mass gathering, where people may forego the rules of social distancing is a prelude to disaster. Close distances allow the virus to be transmitted from one person to another thus making the Covid problem worse.
The provincial government released a copy of the new executive order (EO) on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2020. The EO echoed the recommendation of the national Inter Agency Task Force (IATF) to put Bohol under MGCQ. The Bohol Tribune earlier reported about the IATF’s recommendation to place Bohol under MGCQ in the newspaper’s website.
Bohol remains under MGCQ until the end of November 2020, thus extending further the stipulations contained in EO No. 33 of Yap.
OUTBREAK
The governor cited the local outbreak in the town of Tubigon as one of the reasons to extend the MGCQ status in the province.
As of yesterday, Oct. 3, 2020, Tubigon town has at least 30 active Covid cases. Tubigon mayor William Jao, in an earlier radio interview said, that the epicenter of the outbreak in the said town is in barangay Pooc Occidental.
Of course, Yap’s EO considered the increasing number of Covid cases around the country as stated in the EO.
In the next few days, until the end of November 2020, people are expected to follow the health and safety protocols, as mandated in the new EO.
Businesses are still allowed to operate in limited capacity under the stipulations of EO No. 33 which the governor relayed in his latest EO.
Furthermore, local government units in Bohol are allowed to impose granular lockdowns when the need arises, the governor said in his EO.