CEBU CITY – The Department of Health in Central Visayas said it is now pushing for the revival of reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) testing for the travellers arriving at the Mactan-Cebu International Airport.
Dr. Mary Jean Loreche, DOH-7 chief pathologist and Covid-19 regional spokesperson, said swab testing will help health authorities in identifying travellers who may have been infected and have the risk of passing on the coronavirus to the locals.
With the National Capital Region (NCR) imposing “bubble” measures to selected areas with high Covid-19 cases, Loreche said it is the best time to test arriving passengers. The NCR Plus bubble places Metro Manila, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna and Rizal under strict community quarantine for two weeks from March 22 to April 4 to address the Covid-19 surge.
In this setup, a bubble applies to a cluster of people restricted from going in and out of a covered area. They can only move out if they can secure authority.
“With the no testing policy, the slowing of travellers from the bubble areas can mean we won’t be receiving individuals who may be harboring the virus but we can’t know for sure as they aren’t tested,” Loreche told the Philippine News Agency.
She, however, said the bubble would mean “there are no travellers arriving here from NCR” which in a “way might not add to our cases”.
Loreche said the DOH-7 has been conducting a series of consultative meetings with Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia to convince the provincial leadership to revive the “no testing, no entry” policy in the airport and the setting up again of Covid-19 help desks in the arrival area.
She also urged local government officials to ramp up their preparations for the upcoming inoculation of the senior citizens and vulnerable sectors, adding, they should also strengthen the campaign of guarding the vulnerable sectors, such as the elderly and sick in the household, by ensuring that “active members” of the family who have been going out must be assured they are not carriers of coronavirus.
“Those who are (at) high risk must wear at all times their face mask even at your home. This is to prevent transmission within the household,” Loreche said.
In February, Garcia signed Executive Order (EO) 12 which no longer require RT-PCR test for visitors from other provinces. All the tourists need to prepare are a valid medical certificate issued within 7 days before the travel date and proof of booking at a hotel or resort accredited by the Cebu Provincial Tourism Task Force. They must also pass through symptoms checking at the point of departure and point of arrival.
Garcia said visitors who wish to visit Cebu and stay in resorts and hotels will only need to show their pre-booked reservations, while those who want to experience the different tourism activities will have to register ahead at the Capitol’s booking portal.
This was the agreement reached by the Cebu Provincial Tourism Task Force in a meeting called by Garcia. In the meeting, the members were unanimous in their observation of the need to revive Cebu’s economy as more and more people are suffering from joblessness.
“A lot of our constituents already are suffering, many have lost their jobs, many have been wanting to find some living. Because of these constraints (community restrictions) lisud gyud kaayo, especially those in the tourism industry,” Department of the Interior and Local Government Provincial Director Jhoaden Lucero observed, adding, the opening of tourism will be “a step to moving forward”.
Officials also emphasized that the Province is the main hub of tourism, education, information technology, and a major economic player in the region.
Provincial Tourism Officer Marti Ybañez said while tourism traffic increased during the holiday season, it dropped again this year. “Opening up our borders will really help our industry,” Ybañez told the Garcia.
Cebu was the first province to open its tourism industry as early as the end of July last year to revive the economy that is badly beaten by the Covid-19 pandemic. Garcia has been in the forefront in this battle while rallying all local leaders, public and private, and national government agencies to push the economy forward.
Major economic programs have already been rolled out since last year including the Sugbo Negosyo grassroots livelihood activity which supports Cebu’s homegrown products and entrepreneurs. Agriculture was also given a boost through its Sugbusog program or the backyard vegetable gardening which is spurring economy activity in the grassroots. (By John Rey Saavedra, Vanessa L. Almeda and Cebu Examiner.)
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