Overseas flights bound for Cebu to land at MCIA starting June 6

Overseas flights bound for Cebu may land at the Mactan Cebu International Airport (MCIA) starting Sunday-June 6, 2021.

This is because the memorandum signed by Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea diverting all international flights bound for the MCIA to the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) from 1 a.m. of May 29 up to 11:59 p.m. on Saturday-June 5 was not extended.

“Per memo from Executive Secretary, the diversion is only up to June 5 at 11:59 p.m. So tomorrow, June 6, flights to Cebu will resume. Resumption will push thru unless an extension of the diversion will be ordered. So far there is none yet,” Atty. Glenn Napuli, MCIA officer-in-charge told GMA News.

Overseas Workers Welfare Administration chief Hans Leo Cacdac confirmed that overseas flights to Cebu will resume on Sunday.

Malacanang earlier said that the rerouting of overseas flights bound for Cebu was done due to the lack of quarantine hotels for returning Filipinos.

The same memo ordering the rerouting of flights also mentioned that current testing and quarantine protocols approved and issued by the IATF must be enforced in all ports of entry “regardless of any specific protocols that may be issued by the local government units (LGU) to the contrary.”

Cebu's testing and quarantine protocols differed from that of the IATF after Cebu Gov. Gwen Garcia ordered last March that passengers arriving from abroad must undergo swab testing for novel coronavirus upon arrival at the airport.

They would then be allowed to go home following a negative test result.

The IATF requires swab tests for inbound travelers on the 7th day of their quarantine. They are required to stay in quarantine hotels until the swab results come out.

Garcia met with President Duterte on May 31 to explain Cebu’s policy.

In a press conference the following day, the governor said she explained to Duterte the “humanitarian aspect” of Cebu’s quarantine protocols.

According to Garcia, Returning Overseas Filipinos (ROFs) and Overseas Filipino Workers would be able to spend more time with their families because they do not have to wait in quarantine hotels for seven days to be swabbed and few more days until the swab results come out.

“We swab twice because when he goes back to his family, he is swabbed again on the seventh day. I brought up the humanitarian aspect that they (ROFs and OFWs) don’t have much time. They come home because they have a reason,” Garcia said.

President Duterte gave Health Secretary Francisco Duque until June 3 to critique Garcia’s policy. Malacanang has yet to announce the content of Duque’s report to the President. — DVM, GMA News