BUSINESS establishments, as well as sea and land transport going in and out of Cebu City, can operate at 100 percent capacity now that the city has been placed under Alert Level 1 from March 16 to 31, 2022.This was announced by North District City Councilor Joel Garganera, deputy chief implementer of the Emergency Operations Center (EOC), who said the responsibility to strictly implement the health protocols like wearing of face masks as advised by Mayor Michael Rama still lies with the management of the business establishments and transport companies.“Naa mana sa lagda (That’s in the guidelines) so we will increase the capacity. We gave the decision to the particular establishment on how to go about it. The range is as far as 100 percent, but we gave that responsibility to the owners to still maintain the basic health protocol,” Garganera said Wednesday, March 16.Garganera credited the people for following the government’s directive on health protocols and for the declining Covid-19 cases enabling the city to achieve the less restrictive Alert Level 1 status.He said the new alert level will prepare them in their transition from Covid-19 pandemic to endemic, especially the city’s healthcare system.Garganera said as prescribed by Mayor Rama’s executive order issued last Feb. 24, all legal activities that were previously banned during the pandemic will now be allowed.The business sector in Cebu City welcomed the deescalation of the alert level status of the city to Alert Level 1 from Alert Level 2.Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry president Charles Kenneth Co told SunStar Cebu Wednesday that the Alert Level 1 classification will allow more businesses to thrive in the city.Co said all businesses, especially the business process outsourcing firms and food and entertainment hubs, can now operate at full capacity.Under Alert level 2, establishments allowed to operate could do so only at a maximum of 50 percent indoor venue capacity and 70 percent outdoor venue capacity.Co urged the public not to be complacent. He encouraged the public to get vaccinated against Covid-19 and avail themselves of the free booster shots.Presidential spokesperson Martin Andanar announced on Tuesday, March 15, that 49 areas in the country would now be placed under this lowest alert level classification.New Covid-19 cases have stayed low with Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire saying Tuesday that the country averaged just 559 daily cases in the past week.In Central Visayas, only Cebu City and the Province of Siquijor are under Alert Level 1. The provinces of Bohol, Negros Oriental and Cebu, as well as the cities of Mandaue and Lapu-Lapu are still under Alert Level 2.Despite the recent development, businesses such as tourism sites located in remote areas in the northern and southern parts of Cebu may receive fewer customers due to the extremely high prices of oil products, said Co.When asked about the impact of the oil price hike in Metro Cebu, Co said, “We have not seen the significant impact to businesses yet apart from the increase in logistic cost.”With the city now under Alert Level 1, the Cebu City Police Office (CCPO) said it would shift its focus back to fighting crime from the enforcement of health protocols.CCPO deputy director for operation Wilbert Parilla said they had not focused too much on the health protocols anyway after the curfew for adults was lifted in the city last Feb. 24.He said basketball and other contact sports are now allowed, as well as indoor activities. (PAC / TPT, IRT, AYB)