Photo: El Periodico
ACTING on the directive of Mayor Joy Belmonte, key administrators from the Quezon City Local Government — notably officials from the Department of Public Order and Safety (DPOS), the Epidemiology and Surveillance Unit (QCESU), and the Task Force on Transport and Traffic Management — met with QCPD District Director PBGen Remus Medina and DILG QC Director Manny Borromeo this afternoon, to discuss the appeal for reconsideration submitted by BAYAN regarding rally permits for the upcoming State of the Nation Address (SONA).
Previously, the city officials met with BAYAN Secretary General Renato Reyes Jr., Obet de Castro, Atty. Carlos Montemayor Jr. (National Union of Peoples Lawyers), Sanlakas leader Flor Santos and Atty. Jose Pedrosa, and Lieu Razos of the Philippine Build Better Movement (PBBM) in the morning.
The focal point of the discussion was how to uphold the fundamental constitutional right to freedom of peaceful assembly and free speech, while simultaneously ensuring public order and safety.
Based on these dialogues, the local government has decided to allow progressive groups to conduct their march and assembly along Commonwealth Avenue (eastbound) up to the corner of Tandang Sora Avenue on Monday, July 25, while the PBBM and allied groups will be allowed to conduct their program along Interim Batasan Pambansa (IBP) Road near Sinagtala Street, Barangay Batasan Hills.
The city government will likewise suspend classes in all levels on Monday as a courtesy to President Ferdinand Romualdez Marcos, Jr., who will deliver his first State of the Nation Address, and to avoid inconveniencing students who may find transportation difficult.
Quezon City-based businesses are likewise highly encouraged to do the same, or adopt work-from-home arrangements, in order to ease mobility requirements and congestion.
“We are also reminding organizers of the activities to follow minimum health protocols, such as wearing of face masks, to prevent the spread of COVID-19, as well as to discipline their ranks and finish their activities on the agreed time,” said the statement.
For their part, the PNP has agreed to exercise maximum tolerance throughout the day’s activities.
