During the said meeting, LEDIPO Jamju Rivera discussed the Executive Order (EO) that directed the establishment of checkpoints in key areas in the city’s major intersections and main thoroughfares. These said checkpoints have also been tasked to check whether commuters are in possession of the StaySafe.ph QR Codes as mandated by EO 14, s. 2021.

A particular issue was also raised on how said directive has caused traffic jams. However, Mayor Turabin-Hataman said that though the City empathizes with the general public due to the inconvenience these protocols may have created, the imposition of a General Community Quarantine Status (GCQ) aims to stem the transmission of COVID-19 by limiting people’s movement especially if the reasons for such are for non-essential purposes.

This was seconded by Dr. Mohrein Ismael VI, City Health Officer, who said that the use of the StaySafe.ph QR Code was long overdue for implementation as this was not merely for contact-tracing but a veritable tool for data-based decision-making in this period of the pandemic. In the same line, the CHO head recommended putting in abeyance the city’s hosting of pilot face-to-face classes until the current situation improves.

The Provincial DRRMO Mr. Nixon Alonzo admitted that it was the Provincial Government who asked the police to also check vaccination cards in the checkpoints although this was not required. However, Dr. Ismael VI noted that since this was enforced, the number of vaccinations has increased with almost 800 individuals getting their jabs yesterday, October 19.

Mayor Turabin-Hataman reiterated the push to increase vaccination awareness given the state of GCQ in the city.

Meanwhile, the Regional Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (RIATF) is slated to conduct an assessment tomorrow, October 21, in several areas of the city. Places to be visited include Infante Hospital, TTMF, Barangay Isolation Unit in Begang, quarantine checkpoints, Emergency Operations Center, and vaccine storage facilities.