Bongbong, Sara want Metro Manila caravan reset

MANILA, Philippines — The tandem of former senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. and Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio yesterday appealed to their supporters to postpone the caravan in Metro Manila scheduled today amid concerns on the potential resurgence of COVID-19 cases and the threat of the highly transmissible Omicron variant.

In a joint statement, the tandem called on their supporters who are set to hold a unity caravan in Caloocan City to reschedule their event to a later date.

“The safety of everyone is of paramount importance to us. That is why we are advising all our supporters to exercise self restraint in their political mobilization plans in compliance with the IATF decision. We are also appealing to our supporters to suspend mass gatherings and obey the guidelines under Alert Level 3,” they stressed, referring to the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases.

Malacañang said on Friday night that Metro Manila would be put under Alert Level 3 from Jan. 3 to 15 following a Department of Health warning of a surge in infections and the detection of local cases of the Omicron variant.

The tandem held a caravan in Quezon City last Dec. 8.

Under Alert Level 3, cinemas and other businesses will only operate at 30-percent indoor venue capacity for fully vaccinated persons and 50-percent outdoor venue capacity. Some activities considered to be “high risk” for transmission will not be allowed like face-to-face classes in primary education, contact sports, amusement parks, casinos, horseracing, cockfighting, and gathering of individuals not from the same household.