CEBU CITY, Philippines – The Department of Education in Central Visayas (DepEd-7) has already received around 85 applications from different Local Government Units (LGUs) in converting public schools into a quarantine facility.
But Dr. Saustiano Jimenez, regional director of DepEd-7, said that out of these numbers, only 80 has gained approval from the agency.
He also clarified that even if the agency has already approved a school to be converted into a quarantine area, the LGUs still needs to comply with the requirements set by the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) based on their circular.
Jimenez said that based on the circular of the DILG, schools should only be considered as last resort, whenever no other facilities are available to become a quarantine area.
“So ang ato lang nga compliant to the DILG circular nga supposedly schools shall be the last resort. Whenever there are no facility, so we need certification from the local government unit (LGU) or from our supervisor that there is no other facility that can be used as quarantine area,” Jimenez said.
He added that out of the 80 public schools that were approved by DepEd-7 to become a quarantine area, less than one percent are already occupied by COVID-19 patients or suspected patients.
Jimenez explained that some LGUs only made the request as preparation if ever the COVID-19 cases in their area will eventually increase.
“Ang uban sad gi-ready nila kay back-up nila sa ilang facility like for example they already have their hospitals but only can accommodate this number. So ang ilang gi-foresee, if more than this number, where will they go? So with that, mao nang gi-check nilang daan qualified ba pod sa DOH nga requirement and then if ever kulang, at least they still have time to prepare the school for whatever is lacking para mo-qualify sa DOH requirement,” he added.
He revealed that currently, around three schools were only occupied including the school in barangay Luz, the area described as the epicenter of COVID-19 in Cebu City./rcg