Mayor Jerry Treñas has appealed to the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) for the Management of Emerging Infectious Disease to again temporarily stop the return of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) to Iloilo City.
In his letter to IATF chairman Delfin Lorenzana, Treñas said he made the appeal due to the “sharp rise of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in the city.”
The city, as of Sept. 17, logged a total of 1,811 confirmed cases of COVID-19.
Treñas wanted a moratorium of at least two weeks or until September 30, 2020.
“As per recommendation of the Iloilo City COVID-19 Team, if the influx of travellers remain uncontrolled, it will result in a shortage of beds in our quarantine facilities and overwhelm our already strained healthcare system as a whole,” he said.
“Ginapangayo ko guid ang pag-intsindi sang tanan. Madamu guid nga salamat,” the mayor added.
Treñas also requested the IAFT to allow the city government to “retain the our health protocols, including swab test and government facility quarantine, for returning OFWs upon their arrival.”
“Despite having been tested to be negative from their point of origin, we cannot discount the fact that returning OFWs are not immune from exposure to possible contraction of COVID-19 while they are in transit to their respective LGU’s of destination,” the mayor said.
“This would highlight the efficiency of receiving LGUs to administer their testing and isolation rather than conducting the same prior to their departure. This would effectively break the chain of transmission and help our ROFs save on costs and resources,” Treñas further said.IMT
Photo of Treñas by Arnold Almacen
