NegOcc guv, Bacolod mayor urges public to wear masks anew

By Dolly Yasa

BACOLOD City – Negros Occidental Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson and Bacolod City Mayor Alfredo Benitez are appealing anew to the public to wear face masks amid the rise in Covid-19 cases nationwide.

“I would like to appeal to the Negrenses to wear face masks, Negros Occidental is among the 20-plus provinces that have seen Covid-19 cases rise,” Lacson told reporters in a press briefing in his office Tuesday.

He said that based on the National Inter-Agency Task Force (NIATF), Negros Occidental is under Alert Level 2.

“It means 50 percent capacity indoors and if outdoor 70 percent capacity,” the governor said.

He added though that “now as much as possible we should avoid restrictions, so I am really recommending using face mask para lang we can protect ourselves.”

Lacson pointed out that if the case trend continues to go up, then maybe an executive order is needed, so in the meantime “I am asking the Negrenses to, on their own, agree to wearing face masks.”

As of yesterday, the province has 74 active cases, with Monday alone logging 11 and the day before with 12.

“That seems to be the number, so let us wear face masks, those who are not vaccinated, I would suggest limiting your travel if it is not important, just stay at home because we had people dying because of Covid,” the governor said.

“At home, we presumed everybody is well, nobody is sick, you cannot guarantee that when you go out, especially when you use public transport, you cannot assure that everybody is well inside the public transportation.”

On his part, Benitez said Bacolod City is under alert status 1.

“I am again urging all Bacolodnons to follow the minimum health protocols as indicated in President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s Executive Order No.7, ” he said.

The EO calls for the voluntary wearing of face masks in indoor and outdoor settings, reiterating the continued implementation of minimum public health standards during the state of public health emergency relative to the pandemic.

Benitez stressed that the wearing of face masks is voluntary except in public transportation and health facilities.

Dr. Julius Drilon, chief of the Dona Corazon Locsin Montelibano Memorial Regional Hospital posted on Monday that in the past two weeks, samples from Bacolod City Epidemiology and Surveillance Unit processed at the CLMMRH Molecular Laboratory for Rt PCR testing indicated a positivity rate of more than 5%.

Data from the city government as of April 24, 2023 showed that there are 5 new (fresh) cases, with 2 recoveries and 1 death.