MANILA - Several Metro Manila mayors want to gradually ease the capital region's lockdown restriction, Marikina Mayor Marcelino Teodoro said Thursday.

Teodoro said the Metro Manila Council will form a consensus within the next 2 days to decide if the capital region should ease into modified general community quarantine, the lowest in a 4-step lockdown.

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"Maraming (mayors ang) nagaalala at nagsasabi na kailangan maging maingat sa pagbubukas ng ekonomiya. Hindi ito kailangan biglaan kumbaga easy lang tayo, kailangan gradual at may consistent health protocols na magtitiyak na yung pagbaba ng kaso ng COVID-19 ay mapanatili," he told ABS-CBN's Teleradyo.

(Many mayors are concerned and say we should be careful in reopening the economy. We don't need to reopen suddenly, we need to do it gradually and with consistent health protocols that will ensure the decrease of COVID-19 cases will continue.)

"Kung anuman ang magiging pagpapasya (Whatever we will decide), we will defer to the wisdom of the IATF (Inter-Agency Task Force against COVID-19) and to the President."

Workers must be prioritized for COVID-19 vaccination and public transport should be expanded if the capital region will ease its lockdown restriction, Teodoro said.

"Kailangan yung mga ganitong support mechanism para matiyak na ligtas tayo sa COVID-19," he said.

(We need these support mechanisms to ensure we're safe from COVID-19.)

"Dapat balansehin ang economic concerns natin dun sa health concerns natin...tingnan 'yung capacity ng local government unit to enforce the guidelines na manggagaling sa IATF."

(We should balance our economic concerns with our health concerns...and look at the capacity of the local government unit to enforce the guidelines from the IATF.)

Teodoro earlier issued an executive order to suspend the reopening of cinemas and game arcades in the city despite national government approval as the pandemic persisted.

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