After multiple reports of shoppers crowding the Blumentritt market, Manila Mayor Isko Moreno Domagoso has now issued schedule restrictions on the area for residents to avoid violating the government’s physical distancing measures enforced during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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In his live city address yesterday, Domagoso announced that different schedules will be placed for Manila and non-Manila residents to limit the flow of people in the area.
Under the new regulations, residents of Manila will be allowed to enter the market from 5 a.m. to noon while non-Manila residents can access stores from noon to 4 p.m.
Domagoso notes that the market is near the boundary of Manila with Quezon City and Caloocan thus the imposed separate schedule as he further addresses the residents of neighboring cities by saying: “As a good neighbor, Manila will continue to allow you to enter so that you can shop for all your needs.”
Meanwhile, wholesalers would be allowed to enter the Blumentritt market from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Even before the enhanced community quarantine, Blumentritt has always been one of Manila’s busiest marketplaces due to its accessibility to residents from all around the metro. Alongside its large scale of market vendors, stalls with their wares stretched up to Rizal Avenue, near the Light Rail Transit (LRT-1) and Philippine National Railway stations (PNR). But with Manila now registering 344 COVID-19 cases, the said measures needed to be implemented.
Header photo courtesy of Radyo.Inquirer.net
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Writer: JOY THERESE GOMEZ
