Some local governments, such as in Negros Oriental, Tacloban, Baguio City and Bacolod City, have reported the limited suspension of classes or graduation ceremonies as a precautionary measure against the spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19).
Negros Oriental Gov. Roel Degamo on March 12 announced the suspension of classes at all levels in all public schools in the province from March 13 to 17.
The declaration is contained in Executive Order 17 signed March 12 afternoon, citing the rise in the cases of Covid-19 in the country, as well as President Duterte’s declaration of a State of Public Health Emergency in the Philippines.
The suspension of classes also came after the Research Institute of Tropical Medicine (RITM) in Metro Manila confirmed that a 62-year-old patient confined at a private hospital in this city has tested positive of Covid-19.
Degamo, in his executive order, said that the suspension of classes would lower the risk of spread of the virus, especially in schools.
Capitol Public Information Officer Bimbo Miraflor, at a news briefing on Thursday afternoon, said that for private schools, the suspension of classes is at the discretion of the school administration.
Already, some schools in the city, including Silliman University have canceled awarding and graduation exercises.
Meanwhile, the number of patients under investigation (PUIs) in Negros Oriental remains at three, while patients under monitoring (PUMs) rose from 13 on Wednesday to 20 on Thursday, Miraflor said.
The positive Covid-19patient is still under intensive care and in isolation at the Silliman University Medical Center here, he said.
“It is fake news that he died,” Miraflor said, referring to social media posts circulating about the 62-year-old male from Tayasan, Negros Oriental, who was first admitted at the Ace Doctors Dumaguete Hospital and later transferred to Silliman University Medical Center.
Dr. Liland Estacion, Provincial Health Office chief, said this is the first positive Covid-19 case in the Visayas, and in Negros Oriental.
Meanwhile, the PUMs who have history of travel to Hong Kong, South Korea and China are recovering.
In a related development, health authorities have started contact tracing in Tayasan, the hometown of the Covid-19 patient, Estacion said, adding that those included are immediate family members, relatives, and others who have come in close contact with the patient.
The elderly patient traveled to Manila in late February and returned to Dumaguete on board a Philippine Airlines flight on March 1.
Tacloban weeklong class suspension
The Tacloban City government declared on Thursday a suspension of classes in all levels from March 13 to 20.
The closure of campuses affecting thousands of students may be extended depending on the situation, Mayor Alfred Romualdez said in a news briefing at the city hall.
The mayor issued Executive Order 2020-03-014 as an “appropriate response and measure to curtail and eliminate Covid-19.”
“I believe that school authorities are doing their best to protect the children. But what worries us is that these children are exposed to the virus since they take public utility vehicles. The problem with the virus is that it is novel and no medicines yet to treat this,” Romualdez told reporters.
He urged college students to go back to their home provinces and stay indoors during the week-long class suspension.
The city health office reported that a school teacher is under quarantine at the Eastern Visayas Regional Medical Center after manifesting symptoms similar to coronavirus on Wednesday.
The patient is the wife of an overseas Filipino worker who just returned to Europe after a two-week vacation in the city.
The city government is still waiting for the test result from RITM.
Baguio City govt suspends classes
In Baguio City, the city government on Thursday ordered the suspension of classes in all levels for both public and private schools from March 13 to 22 to allow school authorities to sanitize and disinfect classrooms and facilities to prevent the possible spread of Covid-19.
Executive Order 60-2020 issued by Mayor Benjamin Magalong was in line with the state of public health emergency proclamation of President Duterte, ordering all local government units to help address and prevent the spread of the Covid-19.
“After discussion with officials from Department of Education [DepEd] and the Commission on Higher Education [CHED], there is a need to suspend classes in all levels public and private schools to safeguard our students, and so that these institutions may implement stringent action to disinfect their respective campuses,” the order said.
Meanwhile, La Trinidad, Benguet Mayor Romeo Salda also issued EO 007-2020 on Thursday to temporarily suspend all crowd-drawing events and tourism-related activities in the town amid the surge of Covid-19 cases in the country.
Those suspended are concerts, pageants, fun runs, barangay and cooperative assemblies, major programs and other activities of a similar nature whether private or local government unit-led.
The order included a prohibition for all municipal officials and employees from traveling outside the province of Benguet, except in the exigency of service.
Bacolod suspends graduation rites
In Bacolod City, Mayor Evelio Leonardia has issued an executive order suspending the graduation and moving-up ceremonies in all levels of public and private schools here until further notice due to the threat of Covid-19.
“It is imperative that the city government implements urgent and critical measures to prevent the spread of the disease,” the mayor said in EO 16-2020 released on Thursday.
Leonardia cited Resolution 282-2020 approved by the City Council on Wednesday declaring a local state of health emergency, after President Duterte made a similar declaration all over the country, and after the World Health Organization also declared the disease as public health emergency of international concern.
The mayor also said the Department of Health strongly urges the public to avoid attending, participating in and organizing events that draw a huge number of attendees.
Leonardia said he decided to suspend the graduation and moving-up ceremonies after three consecutive emergency meetings with city, school, and health officials on Wednesday.
In a news conference with Leonardia on Thursday afternoon, City Schools Division Superintendent Gladys Amylaine Sales welcomed the mayor’s decision.
“I’d like to thank the mayor for promptly deciding on the issuance of the EO for the suspension of graduation and end of school year rites. This decision is consistent also with that of the good [Education] Secretary Leonor Briones,” she said.
“That’s why we decided to end face-to-face classroom interaction by March 20. After that, all our learners will be given home self-help activities. The five days from March 22 to 27 are noncontact days, but are still counted as part of the school days,” she said.
Sales added Briones has suggested that the end of school year rites can still be held between April 13 and 17 “when everything will be okay.” Ryan Mark Molina, president of Negros Occidental Private Schools Sports, Cultural and Educational Association, said private schools also support the decision of the mayor in the suspension of the graduation and moving-up ceremonies.
He added that there are schools that can end their classes by March 27, but those which started the school year at a later date can decide on their own on how to adjust their school days.
Image credits: PNA file photo
1 comment
Now they are saying that the COVID-19 positive councilor from Tayasan did not die? And it is fake news that he died?
This news is so confusing for a regular reader. Who died from Tayasan then? Is there another patient who is 62 years old who is positive and did not die? I am following this new closely I thought, the councilor from Tayasan I thought was a 64 year old?