DILG warns organizers on protest risks

The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) has warned organizers of protest actions that mass gatherings are the fastest way for the virus to spread.

DILG Undersecretary and spokesperson Jonathan Malaya urged rally organizers to consider the health and welfare of participants and their communities, emphasizing that they should be part of the solution to the pandemic.

Malaya highlighted the scientific evidence that mass gatherings facilitate rapid virus transmission, potentially infecting families and communities.

Some groups, like Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan), have announced plans for a protest action at the University of the Philippines Diliman campus after being denied permission to rally on Commonwealth Avenue.

Commonwealth Avenue was intended as a route for protests leading to the Batasang Pambansa, where President Rodrigo Duterte was scheduled to deliver his fifth State of the Nation Address (SONA).

A memorandum from the DILG, as stated by National Capital Region Police Office chief Police Major General Debold Sinas, reiterates the prohibition of mass gatherings with very limited exceptions, as per the Omnibus Guidelines on Community Quarantine.