FILE PHOTO: House Minority Floor Leader Marcelino Libanan of the 4Ps party-list group. INQUIRER FILES
TACLOBAN CITY — A lawmaker has opposed plans of the national government to reimpose the mandatory wearing of face masks amid the increasing number of COVID-19 cases in the country.
Rep. Marcelino Libanan of the 4Ps party-list and House minority floor leader said on Tuesday, May 2, that vaccination is the best way to combat the surging COVID-19 cases.
He also suggested that the country’s airports and seaports must be strict in tracking the visitors, especially those coming from areas or countries where COVID-19 cases are rising.
“To avoid the transmission of the virus, we have to strictly follow all the protocols. The most important thing is one’s self-immunity. Do some exercise, eat healthy foods, and do not impose strict (policies),” Libanan said.
According to him, the United States does not impose the mandatory wearing of face masks and yet they were able to contain the spread of the virus.
In contrast, China, where the deadly virus originated, imposed mandatory use of face masks, and yet it could not contain the spread of the virus, which has now mutated into various variants.
‘Let’s do strict tracking of those entering our airports and have them check their body temperature. If we don’t have a defense in our ports of entry, we will have a hard time in containing the further spread of the virus, especially those of new variants,” Libanan said.
Dr. Exuperia Sabalberino, regional director of the Department of Health, said there is an increase of COVID-19 cases in the region due to several factors.
“Our people no longer see the need to wear face masks. The ease of travel restriction is also a factor for the increase as our people could now travel to places where there are high cases of COVID-19,” she said.
As of May 2, the COVID-19 cases in the region have reached 52 cases, almost double from the 26 cases on April 30.
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