No talking: Authorities offer tips on hitchhiking and giving rides amid pandemic

Several APORs or Authorized Persons Outside of Residence have tried hitchhiking as a means of traveling during the COVID-19 lockdown.

Jason Ignacio, a stay-in security guard, on Wednesday was able to hitch five rides that took him from his workplace on Shaw Boulevard in Pasig to Commonwealth Avenue in Quezon City. He was on his way home to North Caloocan.

“Mga limang sakay na po ako. Hitchhike din po. Minsan po may nagmamagandang loob din po na kahit private cars, nakakasakay po ako. Doble ingat po tayo para pagdating po natin sa bahay, malinis po tayo,” Ignacio told GMA News.

Another car soon stopped to give Ignacio a ride.

Driver Roderick Aguilar, meanwhile, walked overnight from Taguig to Quezon City to get to his home in San Jose del Monte, Bulacan.

“Ngayon lang po ako nakasakay from Quezon City Hall. Dito lang po ako binaba sa Commonwealth Avenue noong isang frontliner na sasakyan na magde-deliver ng food,” Aguilar told GMA News.

Stay-in security guard Jason Ignacio tries to thumb a ride on Commonwealth Avenue in Quezon City on Wednesday, May 27, 2020. He’s trying to get home to North Caloocan and has already hitched rides from five different motorists to get to Commonwealth from Shaw Boulevard. Tina Panganiban-Perez

No talking, no touching

A health expert cautioned the public that anti-COVID-19 protocols should be strictly observed when picking up hitchhikers or when hitching a ride to avoid exposure to the highly contagious disease.

“Kailangan meron kang extra mask para naman 'yung sasakay, kung walang mask o sira na 'yung mask ay mabigyan mo ng mask. Mas maganda kung meron ka na ring mga alcohol, sanitizers sa loob,” Dr. Eric Tayag of the Department of Health’s Knowledge Management and Information Technology Service told GMA News in an online interview.

To minimize droplets circulating inside the vehicle, Tayag said, drivers should also impose a no-talking rule inside the vehicle.

He also suggested a no-touch rule.

Tayag enumerated these suggestions for motorists who want to offer rides:

• Wear a mask.
• Use sanitizers.
• Write the rules on a sign to minimize talking. "Tikom ang bibig. Walang magsasalita."
• Don't let hitchhikers ride in front.
• Don't have more than two hitchhikers at any given time.
• Keep rides short. “Sana kung maghahatid ka ay hindi 'yung lalagpas ng isang oras, nasa biyahe pa rin kayo. Kasi ibig sabihin niyan, matagal kayong magkasama.”
• Pick up hitchhikers only during the day.
• Disinfect the vehicle when you get home.

He also offered the following advice to hichhikers:

• Wear a mask.
• Use sanitizers.
• Minimize talking.
• Always be ready to present your quarantine pass.
• Do not litter inside the vehicle.
• Keep your hands on your thighs to avoid touching surfaces.
• “Kung meron mang dadalhin yung hinitchhike mo, nasa likod. Ilalagay mo sa sasakyan. Huwag kalimutang kasama 'yon sa lilinisin mo.”

Regular hitchhiking safety tips

Police Lieutenant General Guillermo Eleazar, chief of the Joint Task Force Covid Shield, also said drivers should only pick up hitchhikers in well-lit areas.

“Kung maaari sana doon sa lugar, in a way talagang merong establishment like, for example, gas station,” Eleazar told GMA News in a phone interview.

Drivers, he said, should also ensure that the hitchhikers they are picking up are allowed to leave their homes.

“Itong driver naman, tanungin din natin kung 'yung sasakay ba na 'yon is an authorized person outside of residence sa existing na quarantine status. Kasi baka dagdag na problema pa 'yon pagdaan mo sa checkpoint. Itong driver naman natin, dapat ay authorized ka rin pag nasa labas ka,” Eleazar stressed.

He also suggested that hitchhikers take photos of the vehicle they are getting into.

“Yung ating hitchhiker eh ma-picture-an man lang itong plate number ng sasakyan for your own protection,” Eleazar said.

The spokesperson of the Philippine National Police also said drivers can take pictures of hitchhikers that they pick up but warned that this could be done only with the consent of the other party.

“Dapat ay may consent din noong ating pinasakay at baka hindi niya maintindihan o maunawaan. Bago man lumarga ay mahalaga na ipaunawa sa binigyan natin ng sakay na gagawin natin for precautionary measure lamang. Hingin pa rin natin ang pahintulot,” PNP Sspokesperson Police Brigadier General Bernard Banac told GMA News in a phone interview.

Banac also said that there had only been one reported crime involving hitchhikers during this community quarantine.

“Isang nagmagandang loob, pinasakay niya ang isa o dalawang suspect na nakasuot ng personal protective equipment at ang ginawa pala ng mga iyon ay hinoldup ang driver noong sasakyan,” Banac said.

He added that the incident is an isolated case. — BM, GMA News