COTABATO CITY – The Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) is set to lift its general community quarantine (GCQ) status starting May 16, a regional official said Tuesday.
This, after the national Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases, through Resolution 35, categorized the region as a coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) “low-risk” area.
“Based on the classification by the national IATF on some regions, including BARMM, we now belong to the low-risk level when it comes to Covid-19 transmission,” Mohd Asnin Pendatun, BARMM cabinet secretary and concurrent regional Covid-19 task force spokesperson said during a virtual press briefing.
Pendatun said there has been no new recorded case of Covid-19 in the region since May 1 but maintained that they were closely monitoring the case recorded in Sulu.
Despite the recent development in the region’s fight against Covid-19, he reminded BARMM constituents to never be complacent as Covid-19 remains a threat to the region’s health situation.
“Even if we are no longer under the GCQ in a couple of days, it would be better if we follow the minimum health standards based on the directives of the IATF, particularly, the Department of Health,” Pendatun said.
The minimum health standards include increased physical and mental resilience through vitamin intake and exercise; reducing transmission through the continuous wearing of personal protective equipment, hand washing, observing cough etiquette, and disinfecting the environment; reducing contact and physical distancing; and reducing infectiousness through isolation and quarantine.
As of May 11, the region’s Ministry of Health and Ministry of the Interior and Local Government have tallied a total of seven probable cases, 284 suspected cases, and 11 confirmed cases.
Meanwhile, the Regional Darul Ifta has yet to lift its temporary suspension of congregational prayers, including the “tarawih” (special evening prayers) and Friday prayers, in mosques due to Covid-19.
“Congregational prayers and other forms of religious gatherings in the BARMM remains suspended. We will wait for the additional guidelines from the Regional Darul Ifta,” Pendatun said.
The BARMM, comprising the provinces of Maguindanao, Sulu, Tawi-Tawi, Basilan, and Lanao del Sur; the cities of Cotabato, Marawi and Lamitan; and 63 villages in North Cotabato, is currently observing the fasting month of Ramadan for this year. (PNA)
