Flight to be diverted from Cebu to Manila

[Mike J]

All international flights will be diverted from Cebu to Manila May 29 to June 5.

https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/05/27/21/intl-flights-to-cebu-airport-diverted-to-naia-on-may-29-june-5

MANILA (UPDATED)- International flights bound for Mactan-Cebu International Airport (MCIA) will be diverted to NAIA from May 29 to June 5.

The inter-agency task force on COVID-19 recommended the redirection of flights in an effort to contain the pathogen's transmission in the Philippines.

According to a memo by Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea, local government units must enforce the IATF’s approved travel rules for inbound international travelers “regardless of any specific protocols that may be issued by LGUs.”‬

The Department of Interior and Local Government will monitor the LGUs' implementation of protocols.

Malacañang did not elaborate on the reason behind the diversion of flights.

‪Cebu Gov. Gwen Garcia issued an order to test inbound foreign passengers upon arrival at the Mactan airport last March‬.

About two weeks ago, the MCIA said it will limit the number of arriving international passengers to 300 due to lack of quarantine facilities.

The MCIA canceled international flights from May 14 to 15 as the 2,500-capacity quarantine facilities there for returning overseas Filipinos were full.

 

 

[Old55]

Petty vindictive little third world thug. 

 

 

Edited May 27, 2021 by Old55

[Joey G]

Not surprised by anything any more...  we will wait... and wait... and wait.......  to make a trip back... can't afford to get caught up in this kinda stuff.

[BrettGC]

[Heeb]

We were bumped from LAX-Manila then rescheduled on standby to Cebu, then the day before our flight we were rescheduled to LAX-Manila. The 10 day hotel quarantine was no picnic and I won’t do it again. There was only one chair in the room and the back was straight up vertical no recline. We had a Flinstone’s bed and the food was terrible, dried fish and rice for breakfast. If I leave I won’t come back until things are normal. I wonder if they realize the hardships they put people through when they change their minds about rules every few days. Catching an international flight isn’t like flagging down a jeepney when there’s another one behind if it’s full, I had to get to Los Angeles as well, schedule hotels, covid tests.

[Jollygoodfellow]

It's because Gov Gwen is not following the IATF’s rules. Creating just a short quarantine so to put a stop to LGU doing what they want they are controlling the flights and passengers. 

[Mike J]

5 hours ago, Jollygoodfellow said:

It's because Gov Gwen is not following the IATF’s rules. Creating just a short quarantine so to put a stop to LGU doing what they want they are controlling the flights and passengers. 

Sounds like she is "being called on the carpet" to explain actions.

https://cebudailynews.inquirer.net/379758/garcia-to-personally-meet-with-president-duterte-to-present-cebu-figures

CEBU CITY, Philippines — Cebu Governor Gwendolyn Garcia plans to defend Cebu’s policy on Returning Overseas Filipinos (ROFs) to President Rodrigo Duterte at Malacañang Palace on Monday, May 31, 2021.

This she said in an interview with radio station DYSS on Friday, May 28, 2021, a day after the President issued an order redirecting all Mactan Cebu International Airport (MCIA) bound international flights to the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA).

The governor said Presidential Assistant to the Visayas, Secretary Michael Lloyd Dino, set up a meeting between Cebu officials and the president at Malacañang on Monday.

Garcia said she will face the President to defend Cebu as he may not be aware of the actual situation in the island and his advisors, who have not visited Cebu recently, may be giving advices based on the situation in the nation’s capital.

“Moadto ta kay aron mopresentar ta sa figures sa Cebu, unsay kahimtang gyod nato nga gani, kaluoy sa Diyos, MGCQ na ta dugay na kaayo. Ila unta irecognize nga dili nila maadopt ang whole of nation approach,” said Garcia.

(We will go to present the figures of Cebu and what is our real situation when in fact, by the mercy of God, we’ve been under MGCQ for quite some time already. I hope they recognize that they shouldn’t adopt a whole of the nation approach.)

Garcia said that she was already informed ahead of time by the Department of Interior and Local Government in Central Visayas (DILG-7) Director Leocadio Trovela that the diversion of international flights was an option that the national government planned to take.

The DILG had allegedly requested Garcia to suspend her Executive Order (EO) and the Provincial Ordinance regulating the entry of ROFs at the MCIA, but the governor said it was not in her nature to take back what she has already decided on.

Garcia said that she cannot do anything with the order of diverting the flights, including whether Cebuanos will be quarantined for 10 to 14 days in Manila upon arrival. However, if the diversion goes beyond the one week order of the President, she will make an appeal as she is concerned that the airport will lose profit.

“Ako wa nakoy power over Manila. Kung gusto mo nga inyo nang ipada inyong flights didto, wa koy mahimo ana. Pero kung padugayon ninyo ang pagdivert sa flights, motingog na pud ko kay mawadan na pud og revenue ang airport,” the governor said. “In the meantime, please do not ask me to suspend my EO or the provincial ordinance. Ang ako pud nga diri sa Cebu, napakita nato nga mas epektibo ni atong pamaagi.”

(I don’t have power over Manila. If you choose to divert flights there, I can’t do anything about that. But if you extend the period of the diversion of flights, I will say something about that because the airport will lose revenue. In the meantime, please do not ask me to suspend my EO or the provincial ordinance. Mine is just that here in Cebu, we have proven that our ways are more effective.)

Garcia noted that Cebu’s policy is far from deviating from the original Interagency Task Force (IATF) policy because the ROFs are swabbed twice, upon arrival and on the seventh day.

The only difference is that if they prove negative to the virus on the first swab test, they can be quarantined at home until the seventh day.

Garcia pleaded to the President to see sense in the policy, considering that ROFs who are not Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) are not covered with the government assistance. They pay for their own tickets and have to pay up to P50,000 for a ten-day quarantine period in a Department of Health (DOH)-accredited hotel.

“Kanang ROF muuli, wa may mobayad ana iyang hotel. Unya pa stayhon nimo’g napu ka adlaw tag nga tres mil ang gabii. Nangutang na gani sa pagpalit og ticket, pabayrun napud nimog traynta o singkwenta mil. Itabang nalang unta na niya sa iyang pamilya,” she said.

(When ROFs come home, nobody pays for their hotel. And yet we let them stay for 10 days [in a facility] for P3,000 per night. They already borrowed money to buy their tickers, and still we let them pay P30,000 to P50,000 for a 10-day quarantine period in a DOH-accredited hotel.)

The policy of Cebu, which is mostly applicable to Cebu residents, could save ROFs money when they return home.

Furthermore, the local policy could also free up space in the quarantine facilities for those with actual coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection, thereby preventing the overwhelming of the health care system.

Read more: https://cebudailynews.inquirer.net/379758/garcia-to-personally-meet-with-president-duterte-to-present-cebu-figures#ixzz6w9cUXyyv
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