Davao City Mayor Sara Z. Duterte. (PNA file photo)
DAVAO CITY – Mayor Sara Duterte said Monday the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board in Davao Region (LTFRB-11) excluded the city among local government units (LGUs) permitted to resume bus operations because other local governments (LGU) would not grant entry for this city's residents.
Duterte said she learned of the situation after consulting with the LTFRB-11 regarding the exclusion of the city from the resumption of bus routes.
“The last time I asked why we are not included in the bus routes, they answered me that other LGUs refused to accept residents coming from Davao City; that is why they did not assign buses here,” Mayor Sara said in a radio interview.
Sara said this city has prepared all the necessary health screening systems needed for people who are coming in the city since the implementation of the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ).
“They refused to accept people because they are not prepared. As you can see, Davao City has already accepted returning residents and have catered some sweeper flights. Our health screening systems were installed in our checkpoints since ECQ,” she added.
“Woe to the unprepared,” the mayor added, referring to LGUs that are refusing entry of even their own residents because of their inability to conduct health screenings and other protocols.
In a previous interview, Sara requested other LGUs to grant access to people coming from other regions who wanted to come into the city.
“The quarantine is not endless, time will come that the quarantine will soon be lifted. We will use this time to prepare for the influx of people coming into our respective municipalities and cities. The virus is already here, there's no available vaccine yet, and we have to prepare especially in managing the disease,” Sara added.
Without naming the local governments involved, Sara said some LGUs agreed in a meeting on Friday (May 22) that they will soon allow people to come in as soon as they have set-up their respective health screening systems.
“As to the preparation of the LGUs on their health screening system, I currently don’t have the update yet,” she added. (PNA)
