Mayor Sebastian “Baste” Duterte emphasized that it would be better to observe the data until December this year before making it optional to wear face masks outdoors.
This is also in support of the recommendation of City Health officer Dr. Ashley Lopez to maintain the mandatory wearing of face masks indoors and outdoors until December following the proposal of the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) to make the wearing of face masks outdoors optional.
“Okay man na dili nata magmask pero ingon ani unta akong gusto, since ni rekomenda man si CHO nato (Ashley Lopez) hangtod December man daw to iyang gusto. Sa tan-aw nako okay na hangtod December kay gusto nako katong mga probinsya, munisipyo, ubang syudad na dili na mag face mask gusto nako tan-awon unsay mahitabo ato nila. Kung makita nato na okay sila, diha pata musunod pero dili nako gusto mag-una una ta kay kapoy na problema kanang Covid gyud. Mao nay ni encumber sa atoang development sa city in the past two years,” Duterte said.
Duterte said it is best to wait and see to the Covid status of other cities, municipalities, and provinces before implementing the optional wearing of face masks.
“Tan-awon sa nato ang uban syudad kung unsay mahitabo sa ilaha then we can implement na optional ang face mask na lang. Tan-awon sa gyud nato ug dili ko gusto mag-una una ta ana kay ang kinabuhi sa tao kausa ra. Huwat na lang ta hangtod December unya, tan-awon nato ang datus sa uban glugar, kung okay gani di, optioanal. Mao na atong buhaton,” he said.
He said that he cares for the lives of people who will be affected once this is fully implemented.
Meanwhile, Lopez encouraged Dabawenyos to follow the requirement of wearing face masks, and also maintain ventilation, especially in workplaces because these areas may become sources of transmission despite the city having low community transmission, but the campaign against Covid-19 is not yet over.