A seven-day suspension of travel between Negros and Panay will cause a loss of about P50 million in revenues, Frank Carbon, chief executive officer of the Metro Bacolod Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said Monday, May 17.
Dr. Bea Camille Natalaray of the Department of Health in Western Visayas, on the other hand, said it will help bring down the number of COVID-19 cases in the region.
It is an effort of local government units to help curb the number of COVID-19 cases as it will restrict movement of people, Natalaray said.
But Carbon maintained that any halt to travel would hurt the economy and he does not believe Malacañang will approve it.
People will loose their livelihoods and businesses will be affected, he said.
The Western Visayas Regional Inter-Agency Task Force (RIATF) joint resolution with the Regional Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases on Saturday recommended a moratorium on travel between Negros and Panay for seven days, which needs the approval of the national IATF, Iloilo City Mayor Jerry Treñas said Sunday.
The resolution said local chief executives are requesting for a moratorium on the travel on non-essential travelers and Authorized Persons Outside of residence, except for those APORs in the health care sector, humanitarian workers and uniformed personnel to and from Panay and Negros.*