As Boracay reopens, Binay asks DILG: Are we prepared to contact trace tourists?
FOCUS ON CONTACT TRACING: Senator Nancy Binay urges the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) to give more focus on its contact tracing efforts to effectively stop the further spread of the COVID-19 virus. Binay made the appeal following the move of the Department of Tourism (DOT) to reopen Boracay island to tourists. Screen grab / Senate PRIB
MANILA, Philippines — Senator Nancy Binay on Thursday called on the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) to focus more on its contract tracing efforts as Boracay reopens to local tourists.
“Today we are opening Boracay for tourists. ‘Pag may nag-positive diyan na isa, dalawa (In case someone tests positive), are we prepared to contact trace everybody, is the system in place for us to contact trace?” Binay asked officials during Senate deliberations of the proposed 2021 budget of the DILG.
Responding to Binay’s query, DILG Secretary Eduardo Año assured that there are enough measures to ensure effective contact tracing despite its challenges.
“There will be challenges but there are enough safeguards also to ensure that we can do contact tracing like the use of QR code, the mandatory filling-up of the declaration [forms],” he said.
“We’re also ensuring that the hotels, accommodations are capacitated on how to ensure that all information is gathered before any tourist will check in. It’s also a very laborious task but somehow we [will] cope and manage,” Año added.
Last September 23, the Department of Tourism announced that Boracay Island will accept visitors from all over the country starting October 1.
Visitors will be required to have a negative result of reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) 48 to 72 hours prior to traveling to Boracay Island.
“Sana Secretary [Año] tutukan natin kasi base na rin sa experience ko parang kulang pa sa information dissemination pagdating dun sa baba,” Binay went on.
(I hope, Secretary, we can put more focus into this because based on my experience, we are lacking in information dissemination among those on the ground.)
“Sana matutukan lang ho yan because napakahalaga talaga na maaga pa lang ay mahinto na natin yung pag-spread ng virus,” she added.
(I hope we can focus on this because this is really important to stop the further spread of the virus.)
Under the Bayanihan to Recover as One Act, the DILG is given a P5-billion allocation for the hiring of 50,000 contact tracers.
DILG Undersecretary Bernardo Florece Jr. told the Senate that the agency has already received 55,213 applicants, 47,000 of which have already been processed.
