VILLAGE CONTROL POINTS. Personnel from the Philippine National Police man the road leading to Barangay Labangon in a file photo. Cebu City Police Office chief Col. Josefino Ligan on Thursday (Jan. 21, 2021) said barangay control points will be reinstated to limit the movement of people amid a surge in Covid-19 cases. (PNA photo by John Rey Saavedra)
CEBU CITY – The Cebu City Police Office (CCPO) will reactivate the barangay control points in 40 villages to limit the movement of the residents now that coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) cases are on the rise anew, the police chief here said on Thursday.
Col. Josefino Ligan, CCPO chief, said in a press briefing they will present to the Emergency Operations Center the deployment plan of more or less 100 policemen who will man the barangay control points.
“They will be assisted by the barangay peace and security officers (BPSO) in apprehending violators of our quarantine measures,” Ligan said in Cebuano.
He said those who are not bringing quarantine passes and disregarding protocols such as wearing of face masks while outside of their homes will be arrested.
The CCPO is eyeing “targeted control points” in 40 barangays identified as having increasing number of Covid-19 cases. The city has 80 barangays.
Ligan said authorities noticed the residents have been openly disregarding health protocols and some were seen not wearing face mask while walking down the streets.
Police personnel, he said, will be deployed soon after the culmination of the Sto. Niño fiesta on Friday. The Basilica Minore del Sto. Niño culminates the annual Fiesta Señor with “Hubo”, a ritual of bathing and replacing the robe of the image of Sto. Niño.
“A task group from the Armed Forces of the Philippines will be sending troops for the targeted control points near police stations 6 and 3. They will help the police in conducting 'recorrida' (public address) down to the sitio using their personnel armored carrier (APC),” Ligan said.
Ligan’s announcement came after the Department of Health in Central Visayas (DOH-7) recorded rising number of coronavirus disease cases in the city with slower recovery.
On Wednesday, the DOH-7 reported 60 new cases with only 21 recoveries in this city.
Because of the surge, the city now has 689 active cases, which shows a 438-percent increase from the 128 recorded on New Year’s Day.
The city now also has 10,185 recoveries. The number is 88 percent of the 11,515 total Covid-19 cases logged since March last year.
The adjacent city of Mandaue has only seven new cases with zero recoveries. The island city of Lapu-Lapu reported only one recovery and has 14 more coronavirus cases.
Lapu-Lapu City has 112 active cases but registered 2,541 total recoveries which is 92 percent of the 2,765 total cases since March.
In Mandaue City, there are 148 active cases and a total of 2,525 recoveries, which is 89 percent of the 2,845 total infections since March.
DOH-7 chief pathologist Mary Jean Loreche has reminded the public not to be complacent in observing the health protocols prescribed by the Health agency and the World Health Organization.
“Let’s all be mindful and discipline ourselves to follow the health standards,” she said. (PNA)
