ILOILO City – The Department of Education (DepEd) has successfully searched and destroyed breeding sites of mosquitoes in schools during the “Brigada Kontra Dengue” on Saturday.
The clean-up in schools – proposed by Dr. Miguel Mac Aposin, Iloilo Schools Division Superintendent –was approved by Iloilo Governor Arthur Defensor, Jr. last week.
In an interview Saturday, Aposin said that the activity became successful in around 1, 115 elementary and secondary schools.
“We are very happy that our stakeholders, especially the parents, volunteers, teachers, local government officials, among others, responded to our campaign,” he said.
Together with the Provincial Health Office (PHO), Aposin said they were able to search and destroy breeding places of mosquitoes in the school setting.
Among these are gutters unnoticeably stocked with dried leaves and can hold water for the mosquitoes to breed. Also, flower pots in the garden and even abandoned fountains in school parks were checked to get rid of stagnant water.
“There was a mini-fountain in one of the schools we visited which we covered with soil because it can possibly hold water where mosquito eggs can thrive,” he said.
The DepEd also checked on fishponds in gardens, saying abandoned fish ponds can also be a potential breeding site of mosquitoes.
“There was a fishpond in a school in Santa Barbara town but we allow it because it is functional and contains many fishes,” he said.
Aposin stressed that certain plants in the garden, like the bromeliads, can hold water between its leaves and become breeding places of mosquitoes.
Searching and destroying the mentioned breeding areas, among others, is the top priority of the clean-up. Before the clean-up commenced, Aposin said the volunteers and parents were briefed on dengue prevention tips.
One of these is the continued practice of self-protection with pupils asked to wear long, loose, light-colored clothes and knee-high socks to protect them from mosquito bites while school.
Aposin, however, clarified that allowing civilian outfit in schools is purposely for the prevention of the disease and not as an expression of style and fashion, especially among those who are in high school.
Iloilo National High School on July 18, through its Supreme Student Government, has reminded students to follow the dress code and not wear restricted clothing.
“We ask them to protect themselves. We are doing what we can to avoid the further spread of dengue,” he said.
The “Brigada Kontra Dengue” in schools aims to minimize, if not totally eliminate, dengue cases among schoolchildren.
Based on the data of the PHO from Jan. 1 to July 20, dengue cases in the province have reached 8, 956 and 31 deaths.
Pototan town still leads the list with 982 cases and four deaths; Passi City with 481 cases and one death; Sara with 435 cases and one death; Lambunao with 401 cases and three deaths; and Concepcion with 394 cases with five deaths. (With a report from PNA/PN)
