Navotas Mayor Toby Tiangco reminded his constituents anew that wearing face masks at all times outside their home would help contain the community transmission of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19).
“Paglabas niyo ng bahay napakalakas po ng hawaan dyan so napakahalaga po na lagi po tayong nakasuot ng face mask (Covid-19 infection is very high when you go outside your homes, so it is very important to always wear a face mask),” Tiangco said in a Facebook video message on Wednesday.
Department of the Interior and Local Government Officer-in-Charge Bernardo C. Florece Jr. earlier directed Joint Task Force Shield Commander, Lt. Gen. Cesar Hawthorne Binag, to increase police deployment and strictly enforce minimum public health standards in Navotas, Pasay, Malabon, Cebu City, and Cebu province, which have recently registered a spike in Covid-19 infections.
Tiangco said the city government has been receiving numerous complaints on the improper wearing of face masks and violation of curfew hours among minors in Navotas.
He ordered barangay officials to strictly implement Covid-19 protocols in their respective villages.
“Gusto po nating manatiling ligtas ang bawat mamamayan kaya hinihingi po namin ang inyong pakikiisa (We want to keep our residents safe from Covid-19, that’s why we are appealing for your cooperation),” Tiangco told his constituents.
He said residents should not disregard the prevailing threat of Covid-19.
The city government on Tuesday issued a memorandum order to implement a three-strike policy on flagging down violators of health protocols amid the pandemic.
The memorandum stated that the three-strike policy would be enforced in a barangay “if the Task Force Disiplina or the Philippine National Police (PNP) is able to flag down more violators in a particular barangay than the barangay authorities themselves.”
“If this occurs three times, the undersigned (Tiangco) shall refer the gross neglect of duty on the part of the barangay to strictly implement existing ordinances of the City to the Sangguniang Panlungsod (City Council),” the order read.
Tiangco said the city government imposes granular lockdowns on villages that are at high risk of Covid-19.
“Ayaw na po natin na maghigpit ng buong siyudad ng Navotas ngunit kung mangyayari ay tataas po ang kaso ay magsasara po tayo ng barangay, magla-lockdown po tayo ng barangay (We don’t want to restrict the whole Navotas City but if the Covid-19 cases continue to increase, we will impose a barangay lockdown),” he said.
Tiangco said failure to strictly implement health measures could cause a spike in Covid-19 cases within communities.
Meanwhile, he said Navotas City has already received 320 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine from the national government.
“Gagamitin ito para sa first and second doses ng ating mga (These will be used for the first and second doses of) medical front-liners. Kasalukuyan na po silang binabakunahan ngayon at hangad nating lahat sila ay mabigyan na ng proteksyon sa Covid-19 (They are being inoculated and we hope they would be given protection against Covid-19),” Tiangco said.
The city has initially received some 200 doses of the China-made CoronaVac vaccines developed by Sinovac Biotech company.
Navotas City’s Covid-19 cases have increased by at least 8 percent. It has 496 active Covid-19 cases, 5,724 recoveries, and 200 deaths. (PNA)