Palace: IATF yet to decide whether to ease restrictions on outbound travel

The government's COVID-19 task force has yet to decide on whether to ease restrictions on foreign travel by Filipinos, presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said on Monday.

Roque made the statement after Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles said last week that international couples separated due to the COVID-19 restriction may still have a chance to be reunited once the task force finalizes the protocols for the outbound travel of Filipinos.

Nograles is the co-chairperson of the policy-making Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF).

“Let me clarify: Outbound, iyong mga paalis, wala pa pong agreement in principle. Hindi ko po alam kung saan nanggaling iyong impormasyon that there was an agreement in principle,” said Roque, who is also the IATF spokesman.

“Alam ko po masamang balita ito sa mga nagmamahalan, pero mas mabuti na pong alam ninyo kung ano ang katotohanan nang hindi muna kayo po umasa. It’s not a personal decision that I made, it’s a decision of the IATF and I am only the spokesperson of the IATF. Pasensya na po,” he added.

The Palace official said only essential outbound travel is allowed in the meantime. Essential trips include those for business and work, medical, emergency and other humanitarian reasons which cannot be postponed, the task force had said.

Roque then maintained that IATF updates should come from his office.

“I’m sorry to say it, it must originate from my office para po wala tayong kalituhan,” he said. -NB, GMA News