The municipality of Glan, Sarangani province has created a special task force to counter the movements of undocumented travelers from nearby islands of Indonesia.
Mayor Vivien Yap said in a public advisory released late Friday afternoon the move is in support of the government’s efforts to prevent the entry and spread of the dreaded coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) Delta variant to the area.
She said the task force was formed in an emergency meeting on Friday joined by sea and land-based law enforcement and security units.
“We need to protect our coastal areas from these breaches as they could cause the spread of the Delta variant,” Yap said.
Glan, Sarangani province’s southernmost town, is part of the traditional “backdoor” route of travelers and traders from nearby islands of Indonesia’s North Sulawesi province and hosts several Indonesian communities.
Dubbed the “Boracay of the South” due to its famed white-sand beaches, it is just over 200 kilometers away from the Sangihe Islands Regency.
Yap said teams from the Maritime police, Philippine Navy, and Philippine Coast Guard have intensified their patrol operations in the area’s coastal waters.
She added that policemen have also been deployed in strategic coastal barangays to monitor the possible movements of Indonesian travelers.
The mayor said in case of breaches, the foreigners will be rounded up and subjected to mandatory quarantine.
They will undergo rapid antigen testing and all those who turn out negative may be released after completing 14-day quarantine, Yap added.
Based on standard protocols, those who would come out positive will be subjected to confirmatory reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction testing and undergo close monitoring in an isolation facility.
Yap urged residents to cooperate and assist them in monitoring the movement of travelers coming from Indonesia, which is currently reeling from a surge of the Delta variant.
“This Covid-19 variant is highly contagious and potentially deadly. I guarantee you many will go down if this would enter our area,” she said.
As of Friday night, active Covid-19 cases in the area have dropped to only 14 as more patients recovered in the past several days.
The confirmed infections since last year reached a total of 331, with seven related deaths and 310 recoveries.
Source: Philippines News Agency
