Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) Secretary Martin Andanar on Tuesday reiterated his appeal to the public to stay indoors after the government placed two areas in the Visayas back to stricter quarantine protocols due to high coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) infections.

In a virtual network news briefing, Andanar advised the “too curious” Filipinos not to defy the government’s strict health protocols, particularly in areas with a high incidence of Covid-19.

“Alam niyo po, walang mali sa paggagalugad ng kaalaman, ngunit sa pagkakataong ito, wag muna mag-eksperimento ng anu-ano. Makinig po tayo sa eksperto. Sundin muna natin ang mga alituntunin na ipinatutupad ng gobyerno (There’s nothing wrong with exploring knowledge but at this time, let us not engage in unnecessary experiments. Let us listen to the experts and follow the rules set by the government),” he said.

Andanar advised residents in areas, particularly in Cebu City and Talisay City, to refrain from disregarding the rules and regulations of the national and local governments.

In his public address late Monday night, President Rodrigo Duterte reverted Cebu City from general community quarantine (GCQ) to enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) due to the increasing number of new cases and widespread community transmission in majority of its barangays.

Talisay City, a component city under the province of Cebu, was placed under modified ECQ (MECQ) until June 30 for the same reasons.

Metro Manila, the epicenter of coronavirus infections in the country, remains under GCQ.

Duterte also placed under GCQ the provinces of Cagayan, Isabela, Nueva Vizcaya, Quirino, Aurora, Bataan, Bulacan, Tarlac, Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, Quezon, Occidental Mindoro, Bohol, Cebu, Negros Oriental, and Siquijor; and the cities of Santiago, Olongapo, Mandaue, Lapu-Lapu, Zamboanga, and Davao.

The rest of the country remains under modified general community quarantine (MGCQ) until the end of the month.

“Sa ating mga kababayan na nananatili pa rin sa GCQ at worse, bumalik na sa ECQ, please naman po, ang inyong pamahalaan ay nakikiusap sa inyo na wag naman maging curious masyado. ‘Wag mag eksperimento. ‘Wag maniwala na ligtas ang hindi sumunod sa batas (To our fellow Filipinos who are in areas under GCQ, and those that were reverted to ECQ, the government is appealing to you not to have a misplaced curiosity. Do not experiment. Do not think that those who do not follow the rules will remain safe (from the virus)],” Andanar said. (PNA)