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Metro Manila mayor want clearer guidelines on granular lockdown policy in the National Capital Region (NCR), Marikina Mayor Marcy Teodoro said Thursday.

“Sabi sa’min, ‘wag muna i-articulate ang guidelines sapagkat pinag-uusapan pa ng IATF (Inter-Agency Task Force Against COVID-19),” Teodoro said in a radio interview

The IATF announced the suspension of the new policy on Tuesday, hours before its supposed implementation, Teodoro said.

“Kailangan maraming ingat ang gagawin at maging malinaw para hindi maulit ang nangyari kahapon na urong-sulong tayo, laban-bawi. Yung kredibilidad pati ng ating policy-makers ay nalalagay sa alanganin,” he said.

Mayors want the IATF to clarify requirements of when an area should be locked down, Teodoro said.

Among the pre-requisites were the number of COVID cases and the presence of variants, of which the mayors said test results from the Philippine Genome Center arrive late, he said.

Another requirement is the local government’s hospital utilization rate, wherein mayors pointed out that some patients in their hospitals were from another locality, Teodoro said.

“Posibleng taga-Metro Manila, posible taga-ibang probinsya [itong mga pasyente], ngunit ang datos ay napupunta sa San Juan kung kaya ang tumataas po, ang aming alert level,” San Juan Mayor Zamora said in a televised public briefing.

“Ganoon din po sa kabuuan ng Metro Manila… if that will be the case, ang mangyayari ho n’yan, manananatili pa rin as alert level 4,” he added.

But Zamora said he could not confirm why the national government postponed the new lockdown rules.

“We are just waiting for the guidelines… In fact, we were ready to implement already yesterday ‘yong GCQ with alert levels and granular lockdowns,” he said.

Final guidelines may include whether or not authorized persons outside their residence (APORs) can return to their homes during granular lockdowns, said Zamora.

“But then again, kung sasabihin ng IATF na ang healthcare workers ay puwedeng lumabas, we are hoping that their employers will be able to provide them with accommodations for the entire 2 weeks para ho nga hindi sila kailangan bumalik sa granular lockdown area,” he said.

In Metro Manila nearly 13.5 million people were supposed to shift to general community quarantine (GCQ) with alert levels system beginning Wednesday.

The mayors had asked for a copy of the guidelines, which the national government gave at around 1 p.m. Wednesday, Teodoro said.