Palawan Governor Jose Alvarez has ordered the Provincial Inter-Agency Task Force (PIATF) to use all resources to assure the safety of Palaweños against the new COVID-19 strain.
Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO) chief and provincial IATF Emergency Operations Manager Jeremias Alili said they will discuss the possible lockdown or the closure of the borders in southern Palawan through the COVID Shield composed of the Western Command (WESCOM), Philippine National Police (PNP), Philippine Coast Guard (PCG), and other line agencies.
Alili said they have received instructions from the governor to deploy all possible resources to protect the southern border.
“Yan ang inaayos namin ngayon, mayroon akong naka-set na series of meetings para i-lockdown ang Southern Palawan from other neighboring islands. Maging ‘yan ay nanggaling sa bandang Sulu Sea o nanggaling sa Malaysian Island, pag-uusapan po namin ‘yan,” he added.
Alili also clarified that they will only prevent the entry of the individuals or passengers and not the goods.
He also called for the assistance of the barangays in the monitoring of the fishermen in their localities.
He also said that they have already coordinated with the municipal mayors and DILG to prevent the entry of the new strain.
A new COVID-19 strain was discovered recently in the United Kingdom and has reportedly entered Malaysia which is near Palawan, particularly the island town of Balabac in the south.
Balabac town, now virtually COVID-free, has reported a spike of 12 confirmed cases in November from a string of local transmission cases indexed from two female individuals who arrived in Mangsee Island after a visit from the neighboring town of Tawi-tawi.
