Dr. Michelle Schlosser, Covid-19 Task Force spokesperson, said in a radio interview that this as the city continues to recover from the economic losses brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic.
In addition, she said the city was able to manage the cases without imposing a lockdown.
“We will contain the transmission of the [Covid-19] virus without affecting the operation of the establishments or company so that we can balance health and economy,” Schlosser said in an interview on 87.5 FM Davao City Disaster Radio.
She added that during the administration of former Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte, the implementation of a “zoning containment strategy” in offices and business establishments was stopped to help the local economy recover from the adverse impact of the pandemic.
The health official said the task force had trained various establishments on what to do in case of a Covis-19 outbreak.
“Para sa ilang level pa lang, kabalo na sila mu-contact trace, kabalo na sila kinsa i-quarantine and i-isolate (So that in their level, they would have an idea how to contact trace, and identify who to quarantine and isolate) so that the company, the establishment will not suffer the loss from being closed down,” Schlosser said.
Schlosser admitted that the Covid-19 cases in the city continue to increase for the past few days.
As of Friday, August 26, she said the city’s average positivity rate is around 13 to 15 percent. This is three times higher from the recommended threshold set by the World Health Organization, which is five percent to determine that the Covid-19 situation in a certain locality is manageable or not.
She added the local government is closely monitoring the cases of Covid-19 in the city after the month-long Kadayawan festivities that drew a huge crowd.
However, Davao City Mayor Sebastian Duterte, in a separate radio interview, said the city is ready in case there will be a post-Kadayawan surge, which for the first time held its face-to-face celebration after two years.
“Mao na ingon nako na okay ra mag-face-to-face ta sa Kadayawan precisely because andam man gud ta with the Covid-19 Task Force nga ready mu-face og challenges pag-abot sa Covid labi na kung naay outbreak (That is why I’m confident that it is okay to have a face-to-face Kadayawan celebration precisely because we, along with the Covid-19 Task Force is ready to face challenges related to Covid-19 especially in times of outbreak),” Duterte said.
Duterte said that cases might surge in September, although he is confident that it won’t be the same as before since the city had already exceeded its 100 percent target vaccination population.
Schlosser, on the other hand, reminded the public to be vigilant and adhere to the minimum health protocols despite the city being classified under a low risk in the transmission.
