Duterte Alerts the Public to Obey ECQ Rules or Face Martial-Law-Like Order

On Thursday night, President Rodrigo Duterte gave an order to the Philippines’ military and police to prepare for the enforcement of social distancing and curfew. The order to prepare was given to prevent the further spread of the novel coronavirus in the country due to the public’s lack of discipline in following social distancing guidelines, curfew, and other enhanced community quarantine rules.

The widespread nonobservance of social distancing guidelines and curfew by the public had gotten in the nerves of the President.


Although no orders have yet been given to use military and police forces to enforce the rules for the enhanced community quarantine, the president has already asked them to prepare if the public continues to disobey the social distancing guidelines and curfew.

If military and police forces will be enforcing social distancing and curfew among the people then it will be a martial-law-like order, the President exclaims. He stressed this statement due to the public’s dislike of the idea of the implementation of martial law.

He asked everyone to put their beliefs, allies, and loyalties aside for the better good by cooperating with the rules of the enhanced community quarantine.

According to Duterte, he might implement military and police interventions in the following week if no progress occurs.