BY GLENDA TAYONA and IME SORNITO
ILOILO City – “Let us remain calm.”
The city government is taking steps to make sure the metropolis remains free from the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), said Mayor Jerry Treñas as he tried to allay fears brought about by the arrival of Koreans from Daegu City, epicenter of the virus outbreak in South Korea.
An undetermined number of Koreans were supposed to participate in the religious gathering “RUN for Jesus” today at the La Paz district plaza football pitch but the event was cancelled by the city government.
“The city government is on top of the situation,” according to Treñas, adding that these Koreans were traced already.
In Iloilo province, Gov. Arthur Defensor Jr. yesterday ordered that persons with a history of travel to South Korean must be assessed “pursuant to the COVID-19 Decision Tool” of the Department of Health (DOH).
That meant these persons may be classified as persons under monitoring or persons under investigation, and quarantined.
COVID-19, which originated in China’s Hubei province, causes pneumonia-like symptoms. South Korea currently has the largest outbreak outside mainland China, with 1,260 people infected – including the first US soldier – and 12 dead as of Feb. 26.
Yesterday afternoon the city government’s focal person on COVID-19, Dr. Roland Jay Fortuna, visited the Great Mission Church in Barangay Bolilao, Mandurriao district for a closed-door meeting with the organizer of “RUN for Jesus” event, Dr. Robert Senening. Fortuna then proceeded to a nearby hotel to meet delegates from South Korea.
Treñas appealed to newly-arrived South Koreans to voluntarily self-quarantine.
He said he was also coordinating with Department of Health (DOH) Region 6 director Dr. Marlyn Convocar. He had asked that the South Koreans be considered persons under monitoring (PUMs).
As of this writing, Convocar was still in a meeting with Health secretary Francisco Duque in Metro Manila.
According to Defensor, “the situation in South Korea places it in the same category as China”, including the special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau “and therefore demands similar treatment of persons traveling therefrom under the Decision Tool for Coronavirus 2019 Assessment” of the Health department.
Treñas admitted he was unsure of the exact number of Koreans who arrived recently to supposedly attend the “RUN for Jesus” event.
The initial number reaching the city mayor’s office was four but Senening said 35 were already here and these visitors had doctor’s certification stating they were not manifesting COVID-19 symptoms (fever, coughing, difficulty breathing, etc.).
“Ang problema kay galain-lain ila istorya nga amo ‘ni ang nag abot, dason amo naman ‘ni ang nag abot,” said Treñas.
South Koreans here likely entered the country via the Kalibo International Airport in Kalibo, Aklan.
The airport services direct flights from Kalibo to Incheon City and vice versa.
A religious group in South Korea’s south-eastern city of Daegu has been identified as a coronavirus hotbed, the Shincheonji Church of Jesus, the Temple of the Tabernacle of the Testimony.
On Feb. 23, the South Korean government raised its coronavirus alert to the “highest level”.
Yesterday afternoon, the Philippine government announced it had banned all travellers coming from North Gyeongsang province in South Korea where Daegu is located.
“The Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) met today (Wednesday) and it approved to impose a ban on the entry of travelers coming from the North Gyeongsang province of South Korea into the Philippine territory effective immediately,” Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo said in a Palace briefing.
He said the task force is set to conduct a reassessment of the situation within 48 hours to determine if it is necessary to extend the travel ban to other areas in the East Asian country.
In the meantime, he said strict protocol with respect to travelers entering the country from these areas in South Korea will continue to be observed./PN
