BY DOMINIQUE GABRIEL BAÑAGA
BACOLOD City – Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson of Negros Occidental said he respects the decision of the Bacolod City inter-agency task force against the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) to require people intending to go to Iloilo – and people from Iloilo wanting to enter this city – to first secure travel passes.
In an interview over RMN DYHB-Bacolod over the weekend, Lacson said the provincial government will follow the protocols this city would impose.
The city government is adopting a cautious stance in guarding the city’s Bredco and Banago ports, and the Bacolod-Silay Airport since these are the province’s main entry points, and Lacson said he understood that.
Previously, it was agreed by the governors in Western Visayas to reopen their borders, particularly inter-island travel.
The reopening of the borders is expected to commence tomorrow as the region downgrades to the “new normal.”
However, Lacson pointed out the province will still continue to implement the earlier proposed health protocols. Those arriving will undergo tests, and will be required to undergo home quarantine.
Meanwhile, the governor made a request to temporarily stop the return of locally stranded individuals from Cebu after the neighboring province reported a spike in the number of new COVID-19 cases.
At least one family is believed to be stranded in Toledo, Cebu and is awaiting permission from both the provincial governments of Negros Occidental and Cebu to allow them to cross to San Carlos City./PN
