In South Cotabato, spruced-up chairs outside homes cheer residents amid lockdown

Residents spruce up the chairs, where government team members leave relief goods in Purok Green in Barangay Poblacion, Tampakan, South Cotabato. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

KORONADAL CITY –– To ward off boredom amid a lockdown, villagers in the rustic town of Tampakan, South Cotabato have come up with creative designs for chairs they put outside their homes to take in relief goods during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) lockdown.

Jennifer Magno, president of Purok Green in Barangay Poblacion, said Wednesday they were bored to death that they came up with a contest for the best-designed chairs in the community. She was referring to the chairs that the Tampakan municipal government earlier ordered each household to place outside their gates where the relief teams could leave the goods behind.

“In this very stressful time, we need an ice breaker,” Magno told the Inquirer.

“I was surprised that the neighborhood positively responded. They also wanted relief.”

Among those who joined, the Bambao family won for turning their chair into a throne covered by a green cloth and adorned by artificial plants and flowers.

The “most informative chair” went to the family whose chair displayed printed information on how to avoid COVID-19, including avoiding close contacts and the touching of eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands.

Magno, whose husband is a member of the South Cotabato Police Mobile Force and also a COVID-19 frontliner like her, appealed to the public to stay home to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

She said it was just a small amusement but proved to be a great stress reliever for residents stuck at home during the lockdown.

Those who delivered relief packs from the South Cotabato provincial government on Tuesday, April 14, were fascinated and impressed, she said.

The team dropped off the third wave of relief goods, consisting of rice, canned sardines, and vegetables.

Magno, a barangay health worker, said working on their chair designs also allowed the family to interact and bond with each other during the lockdown.

“Before, household members were always glued to their cellular phones,”‘ she said.

Tampakan town has imposed social distancing in the communities.

Mayor Leonard Escobillo, a registered nurse, has restricted the movement of the people by assigning the market day for the barangays to control the spread of SARS-CoVid-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.

Magno said those who would be caught on the streets without quarantine passes, and those violating the curfew, would be brought to the police station and required to do community service aside from having to listen to COVID-19 lectures.

LZB