Tumulak: BICs did not cause spread of COVID-19 in Cebu City

Cebu City Councilor Dave Tumulak |CDND file photo

CEBU CITY, Philippines — Cebu City Councilor David Tumulak doesn’t believe that the Barangay Isolation Centers (BICs) caused the community transmission of COVID-19 in the barangays here.

Tumulak said this after Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu said that the BICs may have caused the spread of the virus in the barangays (villages) since BICs have helped isolate more than 3,000 patients.

Read: Cimatu suspects BICs may have caused community transmission, recommends ECQ extension

“I admit I was the one who introduced the concept of the barangay isolation centers. Since March when BICs opened using the public schools as the isolation center for asymptomatic patients, many of the already patients recovered,” said Tumulak.

The city government only spent for the beds, food, vitamins, and manpower of the BICs, allowing the city to save funds compared to building structures from scratch.

Tumulak said the BICs also helped provide a safe living space for the isolated patients as it had water, electricity, and health care staff.

“This provided a safe place for the patients where there is no discrimination and no risk to infect other family members,” he said.

Not a time for politicking

The councilor was also disappointed with the statements of the public online which said that the BIC idea was a “mistake.”

“If they think that the BICs is the cause of spread, how come during those days only a little were infected with COVID? How will the COVID patient infect someone else when they are quarantined inside the BIC? Covid initiatives needs prompt actions. People need our help. If they have some proof of contamination in the barangays caused by the BICs, tell it to the public with scientific evidence,” said Tumulak.

Tumulak said that the pandemic is not a time for “politicking” and that he is no longer interested in future political agenda since this is his third consecutive term as councilor, which means he can no longer run for the same office in 2022.

“All I want is [to] work hand in hand without mental reservations,” he said.

He also urged the Interagency Task Force (IATF) to provide scientific evidence that the BICs have caused community transmission so as not to mislead the public over their opinion.

Cimatu said in past statements that he wants asymptomatic patients to be taken to the NOAH Complex at the South Road Properties (SRP) as he suspected that BICs have caused the community transmission. /bmjo