Labella to Rama: Put aside politics, work harder in this pandemic

A screenshot of Mayor Edgardo Labella taken during a virtual press conference on Wednesday, January 27, 2021.

CEBU CITY, Philippines — Cebu City Mayor Edgardo Labella hit back at Vice Mayor Michael Rama, who recently questioned his capability to govern the city while he recuperates from an ear infection.

Labella released an official statement hours after he told the media in a phone conference that Rama’s statements are only his opinion and will not demotivate him to work for the betterment of the city.

“If there’s one thing that the pandemic has taught us, it is that most work can be done from anywhere. Although I have been forced to stay at home by my doctor, I have been more productive than ever. It saddens me to hear statements coming from Vice Mayor Mike Rama, whom I consider a dear friend, that puts down our collective effort in dealing with the pandemic,” said Labella.

The mayor also revealed all the efforts his administration has made to manage the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) and how he led the city while being in the comforts of his home.

“While working from home, I have overseen and coordinated efforts by our fellow workers at City Hall and our partners in the private sector in dealing with COVID-19,” said the mayor.

Labella said the Emergency Operations Center has opened two hotels as temporary treatment and monitoring facilities (TTMF) in partnership with Travelbee Hotel to cater to asymptomatic COVID-19 positive patients who need to be isolated and could afford to pay.

This will help free hospital beds that should be reserved for severe cases needing admission. The city also plans to open three more hotels as TTMFs to expand the city’s capacity to cater to positive individuals.

“We enforce strict facility isolation of positive patients to limit the spread of the virus and protect households. We implement aggressive contact tracing up to the second generation of contacts to make sure cases are logged and attended to. We run the CCQC (Cebu City Quarantine Center) and its COVID dialysis center to attend to mild to moderate patients, including COVID positive dialysis patients. This is the only one of its kind in the country,” added the mayor.

The mayor said the city government has held a recorida using garbage trucks to remind constituents of minimum health protocols, implemented the Oplan Bulabog to arrest quarantine violators, inspected businesses reported for issues in their health measures and review their health protocols, opened cluster clinics in two locations to handle consultations and swabbing of symptomatic patients, and opened 11 Barangay Isolation Centers to isolate positive patients.

The city government has also deployed Task Force Kasaligan to help enforce quarantine measures in the city’s periphery, moved the EOC to the old Sacred Heart School to expand operations, conduct daily huddle and close analysis of cases at the EOC to identify sources of infection and modes of transmission, and make sure there is close coordination between the barangays and the EOC to ensure that barangays are aware of the situation in their locality.

Labella said that all these things he was able to do while recuperating from a disease, a testament to his capability to govern the city amid a crisis.

“If there’s another thing that our experience in fighting the pandemic has taught us, it is that we will only succeed when we all work together. Now is not the time for bickering. We have a disease to contain, we have people to help, and we have an economy to rebuild. Put aside politics, Mike. The city needs all of us to work together, my dear friend,” said the mayor. /rcg