If you are caught spitting on the ground in San Juan City, you will get fined, Mayor Francis Zamora said. Local officials have explicitly banned the unhygienic habit to halt the spread of COVID-19.
The Anti-Spitting Ordinance bars the expulsion of fluids that could carry SARS-CoV 2, the virus that causes COVID-19. This includes spit, mucus and phlegm. If it gets "uncontrollable," Zamora said "cover your nose and mouth."
"Yung iniiwasan natin, yung body fluids na galing sa tao na posibleng infected ng COVID-19 (What we are avoiding is the body fluids of people who are possibly infected with COVID-19)," he said in a report on GMA Network's 24 Oras newscast.
If it's not clear enough, people can't expel those fluids in the sidewalk, on the street, in public transport, inside and outside commercial establishments. Sneezing without face covering is also prohibited, so are urinating, vomiting or defecating in public.
San Juan has confirmed some 2,000 COVID-19 cases as of this week and was among the first to report infections in Metro Manila. It is home to schools, subdivisions and the sprawling Greenhills Shopping Center for bargain-hunters.
Violators of the Anti-Spitting Ordinance will be fined P500 at first offense, P2,000 for the second, and P5,000 for the third.
In line with San Juan's efforts to bring down the number of people infected with COVID-19, the City Council has approved the Anti-Spitting Ordinance of 2020. Please read carefully for your guidance and information. https://t.co/cdaObwsL5l
— Mayor Francis Zamora (@franciszamora30) September 2, 2020
