CDN Digital file photo
CEBU CITY, Philippines — Cebu City Mayor Edgardo Labella was surprised that the Interagency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-MEID) placed Cebu City back under Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) late Monday evening, June 15, 2020.
Read: It’s back to ECQ for Cebu City
The mayor said that the city has maintained its high recovery rate of more than 50 percent and a death rate of less than 1 percent, and the recovered cases of 1,874 lead by almost a hundred compared to the total 1,716 active cases.
“Very frankly, up to this day, I still believe that a general community quarantine is justified. The data I see does not warrant the restrictions set forth by an enhanced community quarantine. With all due respect, we have the lowest COVID-19 related deaths among the LGUs in the country, and one of the three LGUs that completed the prevalence survey through serological testing. Our decisions are based on hard data.” said the mayor on June 16, 2020.
Labella said that the data of the city’s cases do not call for the need for an ECQ and that the situation is generally under control.
With this, he will be appealing to the IATF-MEID to place the city back under a GCQ, so the city will not have to suffer another blow in its economic situation.
“Today, I will appeal to the Interagency Task Force to reconsider their decision through the data we have gathered through the weeks. But if they still see that ECQ is best for our beloved city, I will humbly accept the decision of the IATF and the President,” said the mayor.
Before the announcement of President Rodrigo Duterte, Labella already said the city has expressed its desire to remain under GCQ to ease the economic consequences of two months worth of ECQ.
“I want to make known the fact that last June 1, I expressed to the Interagency Task Force that we are ready for a General Community Quarantine. As a father of the city, I saw all of you struggle and put food in your table. Still, doctors were alarmed by the sudden increase of admissions to the hospitals. So the IATF heeded the recommendations of the medical facility,” said the mayor.
The mayor said that while they are waiting for the appeal to be tackled, the city government will strictly uphold the guidelines of the ECQ.
He said the city will abide by the decision of the IATF despite of the appeal. /bmjo