CTA En Banc Resolution No. 5-2021

March 22, 2021 CTA EN BANC RESOLUTION NO. 5-2021 WHEREAS , on March 21, 2021, the Department of Health reported 7,757 additional confirmed COVID-19 cases bringing the cumulative confirmed COVID-19 cases to 663,794 in the country, with a total of 73,072 active cases; 1 HTcADC WHEREAS , reported daily confirmed COVID-19 cases from March 19, 2021 to March 22, 2021 exceeded 7,000 cases per day; 2 WHEREAS , as of March 20, 2021, there are 4,819 active cases in Quezon City; 3 WHEREAS , in a Letter dated March 21, 2020, Dr. Nenette Trinidad, Supervising Judicial Staff Officer, Court of Tax Appeals (CTA) Medical Unit, reported that as of March 18, 2021, a total of 14 Court employees tested positive for COVID-19 and a total of 99 Court employees are considered close contacts for monitoring; WHEREAS , in the aforesaid Letter of Dr. Trinidad, she recommended the (i) reduction of CTA workforce to 30%-50% consistent with Memorandum Circular No. 85, s. 2021, issued by the Office of the President on March 19, 2021, establishing the operational capacity to be observed by government agencies and instrumentalities in areas under general community quarantine until April 4, 2021, and for other purposes; and, (ii) closure of the CTA from March 24, 2021 to March 26, 2021 so that thorough disinfection can be conducted in all offices and premises of the CTA and to limit exposure of CTA employees who are commuting to and from CTA, taking into consideration the high incidents of COVID-19 cases in Quezon City; WHEREAS , the CTA Committee on Employees Welfare and Benefits, through its Chairperson, Honorable Associate Justice Catherine T. Manahan, favorably endorsed the aforementioned recommendations of Dr. Trinidad to the Court En Banc for approval; NOW THEREFORE , acting on the Letter dated March 21, 2021 of Dr. Nenette Trinidad, as favorably recommended by the CTA Committee on Employees Welfare and Benefits, through its Chairperson, Honorable Associate Justice Manahan, the Court En Banc hereby RESOLVES as it is hereby RESOLVED to: 1. PHYSICALLY CLOSE the Court and CANCEL all hearings beginning March 23, 2021 until March 26, 2021; 2. UNDERTAKE intensive/thorough disinfection of the offices and premises of the Court; 3. ADOPT the following guidelines in the operation of the Court from March 23, 2021 to March 26, 2021: CAIHTE a. The Offices of the Clerks of Court En Banc and Divisions, Judicial Records Division, Cash Division, General Services Division, Security Unit and Medical Unit and such other offices as may be identified by the Clerk of Court, En Banc , in coordination with the Chief of Office, Office of Administrative and Finance Services, shall assign a skeleton staff to attend to all matters which may not be addressed online; b. The Offices of the Presiding Justice and Associate Justices shall operate in accordance with the respective discretions of the Presiding Justice and Associate Justices; c. All Justices shall be on stand-by to act on applications for bail and other urgent matters and shall continue to write decisions and resolutions at home; d. Pleadings, motions, and other submissions shall be received electronically; and, e. All inquiries on cases or transactions, including requests for documents and services, shall be coursed and acted upon through the Court's hotline numbers, official e-mail addresses and official Facebook account posted in its website. 4. ADOPT the provision of Memorandum Circular No. 85, s. 2021, issued by the Office of the President on March 19, 2021 by requiring all offices and services in the Court to operate with a skeleton-staff of 50% from March 29, 2021 to April 4, 2021; and, 5. DIRECT the Clerk of Court, En Banc , the Chief of Office, Office of Administrative and Finance Services, and the Chief of Office, Office of Legal and Technical Services to ensure the effective implementation of this Resolution. Let a copy of this Resolution be submitted to the Office of the Honorable Chief Justice Diosdado M. Peralta for His Honor's approval. (SGD.) ROMAN G. DEL ROSARIO Presiding Justice (SGD.) JUANITO C. CASTAEDA, JR. Associate Justice (SGD.) ERLINDA P. UY Associate Justice (SGD.) MA. BELEN M. RINGPIS-LIBAN Associate Justice (SGD.) CATHERINE T. MANAHAN Associate Justice (SGD.) JEAN MARIE A. BACORRO-VILLENA Associate Justice (SGD.) MARIA ROWENA MODESTO-SAN PEDRO Associate Justice Footnotes 1. https://doh.gov.ph/covid19tracker , last accessed on March 22, 2021 at 10:05 a.m. 2. https://doh.gov.ph/bulletin, last accessed on March 22, 2021 at 10:20 a.m. 3. https://quezoncity.gov.ph/covid-19-watch/ , last accessed on March 22, 2021 at 11:45 a.m.