THE Office of the Court Administrator has released a circular allowing courts in the National Capital Region, and in the provinces of Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, and Rizal, or the so-called “NCR Plus,” to maintain a skeleton work force from March 23 to 31.
“All first and second level courts shall maintain a skeleton force of 30 to 50 percent in-court at the sound discretion of the Presiding Judge and the Clerk of Court of the Office of the Clerk of Court from March 23 to 31,” OCA Circular No. 43-2021 read in part.
Those who will not be in-court shall work from home subject to submission of accomplishment reports, it added.
During this period, the presiding judges of said courts are highly encouraged to conduct videoconferencing as an alternative mode to in-court proceedings.
Meanwhile, the Department of Justice head office in Manila will operate under a 30-percent skeleton workforce starting tomorrow, March 24 to April 4, 2021.
“The suspension of onsite work at the DOJ proper will end today (Tuesday). Starting tomorrow (Wednesday) until April 4, we’ll operate at 30% capacity onsite. The rest will continue to work from home. The notable rise in covid cases in the department has apparently slowed down, ” Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra said in a message.
The Department of Health on Monday (March 22) reported a record daily rise of 8,019 COVID-19 infections.
In a bulletin, the DOH said total confirmed cases had reached 671,792, while deaths increased by four to 12,972. It was the third time the DOH has posted a fresh high in daily cases in the past four days.
