City Hall bars unvaccinated persons to stop COVID variant

By Joseph B.A. Marzan

Unvaccinated persons are temporarily prohibited from entering the Iloilo City Hall starting today, August 2, 2021, to prevent the spread of the Delta variant (lineage B.1.617.2) of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)

In a statement on Sunday, Iloilo City Mayor Jerry Treñas announced that COVID-19 vaccination cards must be presented at the city hall’s entrances just for this week, to minimize risk of infection by the Delta variant.

The mayor also took the opportunity to reiterate the current prohibition on mass gatherings in the city.

“For the whole week starting Monday, Aug. 2, 2021, only fully vaccinated persons will be allowed to enter [Iloilo] City Hall. Please bring your vaccination card. This is to minimize the possibility of infection due to the threat of the Delta variant. I am also reminding everyone that mass gatherings are strictly prohibited right now.”

In another statement, the mayor reiterated the policy’s intention to avoid the Delta variant as well as other foreign origins, also citing the greater risk of infections and transmissibility.

“Please understand that [Iloilo] City Hall is an enclosed building. While there are windows that are opened, not all offices have windows. The Delta variant of the virus is several times more infectious than the original variant or the Alpha, Beta, or other variants. Furthermore, it has been shown that the Delta variant virus stays in the air for a while even if the infected individual is gone. This is for the protection of both the workers and the visitors,” he said.

The city’s Public Information Office says that the mayor is also expected to issue an Administrative Order today to impose interim restrictions in place.

The Delta variant, said to have greater risk for infection, symptoms, and death, was first identified from COVID patients in India.

Data from the Department of Health-Western Visayas Center for Health Development (DOH-WV CHD) indicated that city has one case of the Delta variant in the city, a 30-year-old male living in Mandurriao district.