Palace says hotels violating quarantine protocols will face penalties

Malacañang on Wednesday warned that hotels caught violating quarantine protocols amid the COVID-19 pandemic will face penalties.

"It is up to the Justice department [to file charges]. We are under a public health emergency and we are governed by very strict laws," acting presidential spokesperson Karlo Nograles said in an ANC interview when asked if there would be penalties for quarantine facilities that release travelers earlier than scheduled.

"Anyone that cheats the system will be penalized accordingly," he added. "There were rumors, but I haven’t seen proof yet."

The following countries were placed under the "red list" until December 15 due to the new Omicron variant of the coronavirus, which was first detected by South African scientists: South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Lesotho, Eswatini, Mozambique, Austria, Czech Republic, Hungary, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Belgium and Italy.

Only Filipinos returning to the country via government-initiated or non-government-initiated repatriation and bayanihan flights may be allowed entry subject to the prevailing entry, testing, and quarantine protocols for red list countries or areas with a high risk of COVID-19 transmission. 

Upon their arrival in the country, they are required to undergo facility-based quarantine for 14 days, with testing on the seventh day.

These individuals are also mandated to finish the 14-day quarantine regardless of a negative RT-PCR result. 

Separate testing and quarantine protocols govern travelers coming from "green" (low risk) and "yellow" list (moderate risk) countries and territories. — VBL, GMA News