NegOcc mayor, 4 others contract COVID-19

BACOLOD CITY, Philippines  – A mayor in Negros Occidental and his four companions tested positive for the new coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

Victorias City Mayor Francis Frederick Palanca and four of his employees are now under quarantine at the North Elementary School.

Palanca, in an interview on Sunday, said he was confined at the Bacolod Adventist Medical Center (BAMC) and was cleared by his doctor to go home last Saturday.

But in compliance with health protocols, he opted to undergo quarantine at a public school.

The mayor said he and seven other people went to Silay City on board a van and made two stops in Bacolod City on October 29.

His four companions—a secretary, driver, a staff member, and a bodyguard—contracted the virus while three others were not infected with the virus.

Palanca said he had a sore throat but went to Iloilo City on October 31. None of his companions on the way to Iloilo tested positive for the virus.

On November 1, he experienced body malaise and was not feeling well the next day.

He had himself tested for COVID-19 at the Teresita L. Jalandoni Provincial Hospital molecular laboratory in Silay City on November 3 and was informed the next day that he was positive for the virus.

Palanca, the president of the Association of Chief Executives in Negros Occidental, was confined at the Bacolod Adventist Medical Center from Wednesday until Saturday when he was informed by his doctor that he could go home.

Other Negros Occidental officials who have recovered from COVID-19 are board members Andrew Montelibano and Samson Mirhan, and mayors Marvin Malacon of EB Magalona and Jose Maria Alonso of Pontevedra.

/MUF