Pampanga raises alarm over increasing COVID cases

Since the Modified General Community Quarantine (MGCQ) was placed in Pampanga, the number of new cases reported surged up to 243 confirmed patients based on the provincial city health office as of August 2.

On the same date, the provincial city health officials reported that the number of COVID-19 infections rose to 332 even as the province’s two quarantine facilities reached their full capacity.

Pampanga Governor Dennis “Delta” Pineda said in a meeting with the mayors of the province last July 31 that the latest cases of local transmission were traced to workers employed in Metro Manila. This situation prompted the governor to impose “stricter protocols on a barangay level”.

Delta ordered barangay captains to bar the entry of non-residents on their respective areas. Movements of residents working from Metro Manila should also be monitored.  The no-entry rule should be implemented “except in life-or-death situations”.

He also advised the mayors to prepare local quarantine sites in the event that many residents are needed to be tested. 

“In such a situation, I will dispatch our mobile swab testing van to the barangay and isolate the contacts locally,” he said.

Meanwhile, the MGCQ in Pampanga was extended until August 15 as ordered by President Duterte last Friday, July 31. 

Ordinance 765, as passed by the Sangguniang Panlalawigan, was also approved by the governor which strictly enforces the protection of minor children. Parents of minors who are caught loitering the streets without wearing a face mask would be penalized. 

As of August 2, the town has 332 total cases, 169 people recovered, and 18 mortalities. Only the Municipality of Masantol remains COVID-free.

LAYOUT BY: Cristine Joie Q. Bacud

PHOTO SOURCE(S): Pampanga PIO, ABS-CBN News, Inside Asian Gaming