DOTr : ‘Indispensable’ Seniors Can Use Mass Transport Under GCQ

The Department of Transportation (DOTr) is clarfying that recent reports saying senior citizens, pregnant women, and other high-risk individuals will not be allowed to use mass transport under general community quarantine (GCQ) are not entirely accurate.

According to the agency, “highly vulnerable persons” such as those mentioned above may use public transportation provided they are “indispensable under the circumstances for obtaining essential goods and services, or for work in permitted industries and offices." The DOTr emphasized that this exception was mentioned in the guidelines it released.

“The DOTr remains fully emphatic and sensitive to the public interest, and we assure everyone that we will exercise utmost discretion, empowerment, and latitude in the determination of exceptions as may be warranted or necessary,” the agency said in a statement released on social media.

“We also reiterate that even under or during normal situations, we have consistently championed, advocated and upheld the special needs of the highly vulnerable sector, in all of our mass transport facilities and services,” it added.

Here’s a full list of individuals not permitted to go out during GCQ unless exempted under Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Disease (IATF-EID) guidelines:

1. Persons below 21 years old
2. Persons 60 years old and above
3. Those with immunodeficiency, comorbidities, or other health risks
4. Pregnant women
5. Any person who resides with the aforementioned

You can check out the DOTr’s full statement below:

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