It will take a case – just one case – to make a big difference for localities that remain free from the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19).
Mayor Benjamin Magalong has appealed for the public’s cooperation by heeding the “drastic” measures the city government urgently put in place to counter the threats of the Covid-19 and to keep the tourist, education, convention, and summer capital free from the disease.
Capping a week of meetings with key sectors and the city’s interagency task force members that led to a number of executive orders, Magalong said there is a continuing need for residents and visitors to be out of harm’s way in light of the pandemic.
“I must appeal for the utmost cooperation of everyone to adjust our lifestyles as we struggle to remain Covid-free. Social distancing, self-restraint, and self-discipline must be applied to the utmost to better manage our life,” the mayor said in a press statement March 13.
He called for composure and for the public to do their best in observing proper personal hygiene and sanitation, to listen and comply with the pronouncements of health authorities whose “expert judgment deserve to be heeded, more than the wild speculations triggered by rumors.”
“Let us not engage in panic-buying that only serves to deplete the supply of basic necessities, especially of face masks and sanitizers, and deprive others the opportunity of having these for their essential use,” he added.
He assured that those in government, national and local, are doing their best to protect everyone from the virus.
With the spike of confirmed cases in the country the past week, the city government has taken pre-emptive measures such as cancelling, suspending or deferring the conduct of crowd-gathering events. Classes were put off for a week to give educational facilities time to go through disinfectant protocols.
Building administrators, public and private, including the city public market, have been enjoined to go through the same health-protective procedure.
Private gatherings have been enjoined to be scaled down to small, manageable crowds, or reset when the time warrants it.
In the event of a confirmed Covid-19 case, Magalong said the city through the Department of Health is prepared, through well trained personnel and staff who passed the requisite standard in handling the situation.
He added that 19 isolation rooms in different hospitals in the city have also been identified, primarily for serious cases while less serious cases will be subject to home quarantine. – Hanna C. Lacsamana
April 20, 2024
