Mayor Cayetano warns of Taguig lockdown due to health protocols violations

Tagug City Mayor Lino Cayetano on Saturday warned residents the city may be placed under "new lockdown and quarantine restrictions soon" due to violations of health and safety protocols.

"We may be facing a new lockdown and quarantine restrictions soon," Cayetano said in a statement.

"We are working hard to make Taguig City safe and open for business, having the lowest number of active cases per population. However, the freedom of movement in Metro Manila and the recklessness of some establishments and citizens has begun to compromise the gains we have made over the last few months," the mayor said.

Cayetano said there have been reports of social gatherings, bars operating even if not allowed, and other violations of health and safety protocols.

"There have been neglect of orders for no social gatherings, parties with multiple households, overcapacity in restaurants, bars that operate in secret, and playing of contact sports like basketball that is unregulated," he said.

"Yesterday, we received numerous reports of these violations. I hope these establishments and citizens realize that their reckless behavior will bring us closer to another spike in our cases and a possible lockdown that would harm both our public health system and our economy that we have been working so hard to rebuild," Cayetano added.

The mayor said a spike in COVID-19 cases happened before in Barangay Fort Bonifacio, where the number of such infections went from zero to 300 in a week. However, this was contained and all 300 have recovered, he said, due to early detection and active disease surveillance.

Cayetano said Taguig City has the lowest number of active COVID-19 cases per population in the National Capital Region and around the world.

"As of today, Taguig has 7 cases per 100,000 population compared to the whole of Metro Manila with 22 cases per 100,00 population. Our city has lower active cases per population compared to Hong Kong, Tokyo, and Seoul," he said.

The mayor however said bigger problems may face the city if people are not careful.

"We have seen it in homes that held parties, restaurants that disregarded rules, bars that operated despite the ban, and events that are unregulated or misrepresented themselves," he said.

"Because of this, we may soon be facing an even more dangerous wave that will force us to impose a lockdown. It has happened all around the world, we've so far managed to avoid it with strong government regulation and citizen cooperation," Cayetano said.

"Let us stay disciplined and committed so we can continue to stop transmission, save lives, and be open for business safely," the mayor urged.

As of Dec. 18, the city has recorded a total of 10,266 confirmed COVID-19 cases.

Of this number, 10,077 recovered while 122 died. 

TAGUIG CITY COVID-19 CASE UPDATES
December 18, 2020

Ang Taguig ang lungsod na may pinakamababang bilang ng active cases sa bawat 100,000 katao sa buong NCR, na umaabot na lamang sa 7 active case. pic.twitter.com/GeVemtNpvN

— I Love Taguig (@IloveTaguig1) December 18, 2020

Taguig City and the rest of Metro Manila are under general community quarantine until Dec. 31 due to the threat of COVID-19. —KG, GMA News