Cavite lifts liquor ban on June 1

MANILA, Philippines – Cavite residents can once again buy and sell liquor in the province starting Monday, June 1, but consumption will only be allowed inside their homes.

This was announced by Cavite Governor Jonvic Remulla in a Facebook post on Friday, May 29. 

Remulla said only quarantine pass holders will be allowed to purchase alcoholic drinks between 1 pm to 4 pm daily.  

Consumption will only be allowed in private residences. Drinking in public is still prohibited.  

The Cavite provincial government, however, is putting a cap on the amount of alcoholic drinks a quarantine pass holder may buy. A buyer can only purchase one type of liquor per day:

• Up to 1 liter of hard drinks with alcohol proof of 18 and above (example: Emperador, Alfonso, and Ginebra)
• Up to 2 liters of drinks with alcohol proof between 12 to 17 (example: wine and champagne)
• Up to 2 liters of drinks with alcohol proof between 1 to 11 (example: beer) 

Remulla explained they are imposing this limit to prevent any drunken incidents in the Cavite 

“Tanong: Bakit ang konti lamang ng puwedeng bilhin? Sagot: Sa tagal na bawal (pero maraming puslit), baka magkalasingan kaagad at gumulo,” said the governor.

(Question: How come there are only a few drinks to choose from? Answer: Because of the long time we imposed the ban (yet there were a lot of violators), perhaps some would get drunk immediately and cause a racket.)

He also warned residents who may attempt to skirt the rules by buying alcoholic drinks from more than one store per day, saying undercover police will be deployed around Cavite.

“Puwede ninyo subukan, pero ang PNP (Philippine National Police) ay may undercover na iikot. Parehong nabili at nagbebenta ay babantayan. Muli, huwag ninyo subukan laruin ang sistema. Mababa ang pasensya ko sa matigas ang ulo. Palibhasa ubod ng tigas ng ulo ko nung itim pa buhok ko,” Remulla said.

(You can try, but the PNP will be deploying undercover officers who will be going around. They will watch both the buyers and sellers. Again, don’t try to play with the system. My patience is short with hard-headed people. Maybe it’s because I was stubborn too back when I still had black hair.)

Cavite, a province of almost 4 million people, was under enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) due to the coronavirus pandemic since mid-March, and transitioned to general community quarantine (GCQ) starting May 16. It is the province next to Metro Manila in the south.

Under GCQ, provinces can allow establishments offering essential products and services to reopen, but with only half of their workforce and operations, and provided that safety measures are in place.

The 8 pm to 5 am curfew in Cavite is still in effect.

As of Saturday afternoon, May 30, the Philippines has tallied a total of 17,224 with 950 deaths and 3,808 recoveries. – Rappler.com