Several residents lined up at the Maginhawa Community Pantry in Quezon City were ticketed for violating the imposed curfew.
When the curfew ended, people rushed to the pantry while authorities kept on reminding them to observe social distancing.
“Napakahalaga po sa aming mag-asawa [nitong community pantry] dahil sa hirap ng buhay lalo na may pandemic,” said Cristobal Bellarosa, who lined up three times at Maginhawa Community Pantry.
Meanwhile, those who were issued with a ticket were saddened by the incident. They initially hoped authorities would have just reprimanded them.
Violators of curfew in Quezon City are being fined with P300.
But Mayor Joy Belmonte said that she will be paying the penalty on behalf of the ticketed residents.
“An ordinance has been violated, OVRs have been issue[d] so the penalty must be paid. But taking into consideration the circumstances they are in, I will be the one to pay the penalty in their behalf with a very strict warning not to repeat the violation,” she said.
Meanwhile, Metro Manila- which is under modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ), is implementing unified curfew hours from 8 pm to 5 am. It started last April 12 until the end of MECQ on April 30.
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