Follow These Quarantine Rules to Dodge a Fine (or a Lecture) from Authorities

There are fewer violators of COVID-19 quarantine rules five months since the imposition of movement restrictions. A total of 308,859 violators have been tallied so far. Still, there could be fewer, police said.

To avoid a fine of P1,000 to P5,000 or a stay in a barangay center for a safety lecture, it is important to keep the rules in mind, Brig. Gen. Bernard Banac, the spokesman of the Philippine National Police, told reportr. The total number of violators is "higher than expected, but the trend is falling."

People are now getting used to the strict implementation of quarantine guidelines by the local government units, health authorities and the police. Also, partly due to the active role of the media in disseminating policies and safety measures," Banac said.

The most common violations are going out of one's residence without a quarantine pass, not wearing a face mask, not observing proper distancing, disobeying authorities, and leaving home despite being a non-essential worker.

So far, no one has been actually jailed for committing such offenses, Banac said. The penalties are also based on local government ordinances, he said.

Lt. Gen. Guillermo Eleazar, the head of a joint police-military panedemic task force, recently said that authorities have already warned 146,012 offenders, charged 85,657, and fined 77,190 from March 17 to August 10. Luzon had the most number of violators with 183,092, followed by the Visayas with 68,013 and Mindanao with 57,754.

"The success and failure of our fight against COVID-19 depend on the cooperation of our kababayans," Eleazar said. "The more they defy and challenge the rules set by the government to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, the more they make it difficult for our government to protect them."