DAVAO CITY, Philippines- Mayor Sara Duterte- Carpio confirmed that many employees of the city government were tested positive of COVID-19.
The mayor announced it after imposing a lockdown at the Davao City Council Building on May 28.
During her Special Hour program at Davao City Disaster Radio on May 31, she said several employees stationed at the ground floor of the City Council tested positive with COVID-19. The figure was not yet included in the cluster response of the COVID-19 Task Force Duterte-Carpio during her announcement.
“Nagswab na ang atoang mga employees and daghan sa ilaha ang nagpositive dinha sa Sangguniang Panlunsod Building (Our employees were already swabbed and a lot of the employees at Sangguniang Panlusod Building tested positive),” she said.
Mayor Duterte-Carpio instructed the Human Resource Management Office (HRMO) to send everyone home and work from there while on isolation following the incubation period or 14-days home quarantine.
On May 28, the city government announced that the entire city council building in San Pedro Street was closed to the public until June 6 affecting the City Treasurer’s Office, City Assessor’s Office, Business Bureau, and City Civil Registrar’s Office where positive cases are being monitored.
All transactions with the four offices will continue as the city government will install drop boxes at the entrance of the SP building while those paying their taxes and other transactions at the Treasurer’s Office, Assessor’s Office at Civil Registrar’s Office are instructed to go to their district offices.
Also affected by the lockdown is the city council’s regular session on Tuesday which was already confirmed by City Council floor leader Councilor Melchor Quitain.
Quitain disclosed that most sessions are being held online, but the need for some employees like the presiding officer and the council secretariat requires physical presence which is now barred because of the lockdown.
Meanwhile, Dr. Michelle Schlosser of the Davao City Inter-Agency Task Force on COVID-19 in an interview said that 13 employees at the SP building were already sent to the local COVID-19 facilities for quarantine.
The City Health Office has also required the staff of the vice-mayor and councilor offices to undergo swab testing.
