Cagayan de Oro City Mayor Oscar S. Moreno during the daily press briefing on April 30, 2020. (Photo courtesy of the City Information Office)
CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY – Mayor Oscar Moreno has rejected the appeal of 26 village leaders here to place the city under enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) to prevent a possible local transmission of 2019 coronavirus disease (Covid-19).
During a press briefing on Thursday, Moreno said raising the quarantine level runs roughshod with the recommendations and guidelines set by the national Covid-19 Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID).
The IATF-EID, based on the recommendations of the Department of Health (DOH) and infectious disease experts, identified the city along with the province of Misamis Oriental as among the areas that must implement the general community quarantine (GCQ) beginning May 1 until May 15.
“It’s as if the decision was mine alone; you cannot elevate to ECQ without consulting the IATF,” Moreno said.
Moreno placed the city under community quarantine since mid-March following President Rodrigo Duterte's State of National Health Emergency as a response to the rising cases of Covid-19 in the country.
This was the second time Moreno has rejected calls for ECQ, following a similar appeal from several concerned citizens early this month.
Moreno said Metro Manila was placed under ECQ because health and local authorities have been swamped with Covid-19 patients and could no longer do contact tracing because of the exponential increase of positive cases.
He said the DOH-10 and the Northern Mindanao Medical Center have so far been successful in the handling of Covid-19 cases within and outside the region.
“Doing the lockdown now would set back the gains,” he said.
Moreno said even President Duterte himself has acknowledged multiple times ECQ's paralyzing effect on the economy and has advised local chief executives not to declare the ECQ unless warranted.
The petition of the 26 barangay leaders, dated April 27, was received by the mayor’s office on April 28. It asked Moreno to declare ECQ “without delay” for effective prevention of the spread of Covid-19.
The petitioners cited the earlier call of the Misamis Oriental Medical Society for ECQ to be implemented to reduce or eliminate the spread of the coronavirus in the city.
The barangay officials also wanted the city government to distribute food packs to about 140,000 families during the ECQ, the funds of which will be sourced from the city’s PHP300-million calamity fund and the PHP500-million supplemental budget.
Barangay Lapasan chairman Julito Ogsimer, one of the petitioners, said Thursday they have decided to petition Moreno so that the city government would further strictly implement the home quarantine and other containment measures.
But Moreno said barangay officials and residents can help the local government's response better by staying at home and to observe social distancing, frequent washing of hands, and other health practice.
Moreno said the movement of the residents has been severely restricted with the requirement of a barangay exit pass before anyone can go out of their residence--and only for essential purpose. (PNA)
