BACOLOD City – The Sanggunian Panlungsod here is pushing to extend beyond June 30 the use of schools as temporary isolation facilities for returning overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) and locally stranded individuals (LSIs).
The city’s legislative body recently passed a resolution requesting the Department of Education (Deped) in Western Visayas for an additional school facilities and extension of period for the utilization as quarantine centers to accommodate LSIs and OFWs during their 14-day quarantine.
Councilor Renecito Novero, author of the resolution, cited the spike of COVID-19 cases in the country and more particularly in this city.
“As part of the strategy to combat COVID-19, Bacolod residents – returning from elsewhere – need to be quarantined for duration as sanctioned by the Department of Health,” Novero said.
According to the councilor, the 118 classrooms in the eight public schools here with existing agreement between the Deped and city government may no longer be sufficient to accommodate all the returning Bacolod residents.
“Four more public schools have been identified by the City Engineer’s Office, which can provide an additional 145 rooms and accommodation for about 540 occupants,” Novero noted.
These are Sum-ag National High School (40 rooms); Luisa Medel National High School (35 rooms); Mansilingan Agro Industrial High School (33 rooms) and Luis Hervias Nation High School (37 rooms).
Novero said the health emergency caused by COVID-19 appears to be indefinite duration and the need to quarantine returning residents may stretch beyond June 30./PN
