Mayor Jerry P. Treñas wants to close Iloilo City’s doors to all travelers from the NCR (National Capital Region) Plus bubble, Cebu and Davao for seven days.
In his letter to the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) on the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases, Treñas requested “that all incoming flights, sea voyage, and land travel” from those areas “to be temporarily suspended.”
The suspension of inbound travel to the city aims to contain the surge in COVID-19 cases involving returning residents, authorized persons outside of residence (APORs), returning overseas Filipinos (ROFs), and overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) from the NCR Plus bubble, Cebu and Davao.
The bubble is composed of Metro Manila, Rizal, Bulacan, Laguna and Cavite.
“Despite the mandatory 72-hour-old negative RT-PCR test result prior to the date of travel, Iloilo City still records positive COVID-19 cases among inbound travellers who later on develop symptoms upon their arrival,” said Treñas.
“The week-long travel moratorium of persons with travel history from NCR Plus bubble, Davao, and Cebu will help us secure the safety of our constituents while allowing our health personnel to recuperate and prepare our isolation facilities,” he further said.
Last month, the City Epidemiology and Surveillance Unit (CESU) logged a total of 447 cases of COVID-19 (daily average: 14), almost 50 percent higher compared to 265 cases (daily average: 9) recorded in February.
“It cannot be discounted that even prior to the surge of the COVID-19 threat, the city government has been at the forefront in the rigid implementation of the minimum health protocols set by the IATF and health authorities,” said Treñas.
“However, the unforeseeable COVID-19 variants, identified to spread more rapidly, have already been detected in the Philippines which indubitably warrant out utmost caution in containing the spread of infection even more,” he added.IMT
