Chan denies reports on Olango Is. ‘lockdown’; warns city residents vs spreading fake news

Lapu-Lapu City Mayor Junard “Ahong” Chan

LAPU-LAPU CITY, Cebu – There is no truth to reports circulated on social media that a lockdown has been implemented in Olango Island because of the presence of a person infected with the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

Mayor Junard Chan said he already gave instructions to the personnel of the IT Department of the Lapu-Lapu City Hall to trace the source of the “fake news” for the imposition of appropriate sanctions against him/her.

“Aduna tay nadawat nga taho nga adunay indibidwal ang nagpakatap og balita nga nag declare og lock down sa Isla sa Olango kaay naay confirmed infection sa corona virus. Dili kini tinuod ug usa kini ka FAKE NEWS,” Chan said in a Facebook post this morning.

(We received information about a person circulating news that a lockdown has been implemented in Olango Island because of the presence of a corona virus patient.  That is fake news.)

Chan warned that spreading misinformation on social media is punishable because this could lead to unnecessary panic. He is also asking city residents to refrain from sharing fake news.

“Usbon ko, wala pay order sa pag lock down sa atong syudad ug wala pay confirmed nga kaso sa virus gikan sa DOH o uban pang ahensya nga nag monitor 24/7 sa alang sa seguridad natong mga Oponganon,” he added.

(I would like to reiterate that I did not order any lockdown because we still do not have a confirmed COVID-19 case in our city while the DOH and other concerned agency continue to monitor the threat to ensure the safety and security of city residents.)

To access accurate information, Chan asked city residents to follow only the social media pages of government agencies like the Department of Health that is monitoring the COVID-19 cases.