Go insists on strict protocols as thousands stranded in Metro Manila return to provinces

Sen. Christopher Go (Photo from his office)

MANILA, Philippines — Follow health and safety protocols strictly, Sen. Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go urged authorities again on Tuesday as thousands of people stranded in Metro Manila started to be transported back to their provinces over the weekend under the Hatid Tulong program of the government.

Go also repeated his call to local government units to accept their returning residents, as directed by President Rodrigo Duterte.

“Let’s just do this in the right way. Let’s follow health and safety protocols and make sure that the communities where they will go home to will be protected,” Go said in Filpino in a statement.

Last Saturday, July 4, stranded individuals seeking transportation back home flocked to Rizal Park in Manila this Saturday, July 4.

There they underwent a rapid anti-body test administered by workers from the Department of Health and Philippine National Police Health Service. Registrants who passed health screening were granted a travel authority by the PNP at the venue.

Previously, Go had asked the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases to streamline the process of transporting stranded individuals with necessary health and safety protocols in place to put a stop to unauthorized travels and unauthorized initiatives carried out by LGUs and private groups.

The first batch, composed of over 3,000 individuals, left for Mindanao last Saturday aboard various sanctioned vehicles.

Meanwhile, those in the second batch returned to the Philippine Army gym and were scheduled to be transported to their provinces in Luzon the following day.

On their arrival, the returnees would undergo rapid testing for COVID-19  and a mandatory 14-day quarantine — and they would not be allowed to gather, according to Interior Secretary Eduardo Año, who supervised the send-off of returnees at Rizal Park.

In a video message, Go wished the stranded individuals a safe journey back to their families.

“The government is doing everything so that you can travel safely and you can return to your home and be together again with your families that you have not seen for so long,” Go said in Cebuano. “I pray that your trip would be all right. President Duterte and I are always ready to give you service as much as we can. Take care. We love you.”

In an interview with reporters, Vice Adm. George Ursabia Jr., commandant of the Philippine Coast Guard, reassured the public that proper protocols were observed on all vessels, which all had medical teams aboard.

Those bound for Mindanao were transported on 2Go vehicles, and there were Coast Guard ships to transport the rest, Ursabia added.

According to Assistant Secretary Joseph Encabo of the Presidential Management Office, Go’s Senate staff assisted the stranded individuals, giving them food and cash.

“It’s a holistic government approach,” Encabo, who was also at Rizal Park, said.

The Hatid Tulong Program is a joint initiative of the Office of the President, COVID-19 National Task Force, Department of Transportation and various other agencies.

As of July 2, 2020, it has provided assistance to a total of 62,762 overseas Filipino workers and other stranded individuals — 18,320 of which were transported by land; 24,523 via air; and 19,919 via sea.

Go also urged the involved agencies to adopt a systematic single dispatch system similar to the one used in the Balik Probinsya, Bagong Pag-asa (BP2) program, which was also suggested by Interior Secretary Eduardo Año.

Under the system, LGUs are informed of how many returnees they should expect. Local officials would then meet them and immediately take them to a quarantine facility.

“The single-dispatch system adopted by the BP2 implementers for people in the provinces is good because it’s more controlled and travelers will be able to avoid exposure and possible infection,” Go said.

Go and several other officials have previously clarified that the BP2 Program has been temporarily put on hold to give way to the more urgent Hatid Tulong initiatives.

/atm