Dr. Chris Sorongon, deputy for medical data and analysis of EOC-TF, said yesterday, January 9, that he was informed that there is a local business establishment allegedly selling fake paracetamol tablets.
Sorongon said they will coordinate with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as well as the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) to conduct an inspection in various business establishments in the city.
“We want to make sure the safety of the Bacoldonons and those who are taking advantage of the situation should be fined and penalized,” he said.
Sorongon noted that for now, there is no shortage of paracetamol supply in Bacolod City.
“We should not hoard paracetamol (nor) panic because so far, we don’t have a shortage and more supply is expected to arrive in Bacolod City,” Sorongon said.
Meanwhile, Sorongon clarified that Bacolod City is still under Alert Level 2 in terms of coronavirus disease (Covid-19) transmission until January 15, 2022.
“The reported Alert Level 3 last week was the situationer report published by the Department of Health on a day-to-day basis and it was based on the two-week growth rate, average daily attack rate and hospital utilization rate,” Sorongon said.
Sorongon said in two weeks, Bacolod City recorded double digit of new Covid-19 cases.
On Saturday, January 8, it logged 36 new Covid cases, but the city is still under Alert Level 2, he said.
The EOC-TF official said that on Monday, January 10, they will hold a meeting with the barangay officials and Barangay Emergency Response Team (Bhert) representatives to intensify the operations of Task Force Disiplina as well as the vaccination program.
Sorongon noted that Mayor Evelio Leonardia already issued an Executive Order (EO) requiring the travelers bound for Bacolod to present a negative reverse transcription -polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test result effective January 9, 2022.
Aside from the negative RT-PCR test, travelers are still required to present BaCTrac registration, Safe, Swift and Smart Passage (S-Pass), vaccination card and identification cards.
Sorongon said these requirements are only effective for the travelers who are coming from areas classified under Alert Level 3 in terms of Covid-19 transmission.
He also warned the travelers not to submit fake requirements since they are now filing cases against the individuals who are falsifying their documents.
The local government also clarified that the reports that the city will be placed on lockdown is not true.
The mayor, in a statement yesterday, said there is no truth to the rumours in social media that Bacolod City will be placed under a lockdown status starting January 10 in anticipation of the resurgence of Covide19 cases during the post-holiday season.
“Bacolod City remains under Alert Level 2. As such, no directive for a lockdown in the city has been issued by the National Inter-Agency Task Force,” he added.*
