PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte has extended the state of calamity in the Philippines until September 2022, according to the Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO).
“Under Proclamation No. 1218, series of 2021, the validity of the state of calamity has been extended for another year until September 12, 2022 due to the Covid-19 pandemic,” the PCOO announced on its Facebook page Saturday, September 11, 2021.
Duterte approved the extension on the recommendation of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council.
Duterte first declared a six-month national state of calamity on March 16, 2020. The announcement was made just two days after he placed Metro Manila under lockdown due to the increasing number of Covid-19 cases in the metro.
On September 16, 2020, he extended the national state of calamity until September 12, 2021 by issuing Proclamation No. 1021.
Duterte tasked the national and local government units to continue the Covid-19 vaccination rollout and other programs and initiatives as part of the whole-of-government approach in the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic.
Travel restrictions
Also on Saturday, the PCOO announced that President Duterte had approved the imposition of travel restrictions on nine areas placed under the Inter-agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases’ “Red List” of countries, territories and jurisdictions.
Passengers coming from these “Red List” areas will be prohibited from entering the Philippines from 12 noon of September 12, 2021, Sunday, until 11:59 p.m. of September 18, 2021, Saturday, Manila time, the PCOO said.
The areas in the Red List are Azerbaijan, Guadeloupe, Guam, Israel, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Saint Lucia and Switzerland. (CTL)