Thursday, June 12, 2008 City pledges ‘bold measures’ in campaign against dengue By Linette C. Ramos & Oscar C. Pineda Sun.Star Staff Reporters
CEBU City officials yesterday pledged to take bolder measures to fight dengue as they reminded the public and barangay officials to take preventive measures with the start of the peak season for dengue fever cases.
In Mandaue City, dengue cases are decreasing but the City Health Office said this was no reason to relax because the figures are still high compared with that of 2005 and 2006.
Cebu City Councilor Gerardo Carillo said they will now strictly enforce the Cebu City Sanitation Code, which allows the City Government to enter private properties and clean these up, with the cost charged to property owners.
Penalty
As requested by Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña, Carillo said the City Council will also amend the same code to include a provision that will penalize homeowners who keep unused tires with stagnant water, which could be a breeding site of dengue-carrying mosquitoes.
Although the number of dengue cases in Cebu City this year has been consistently decreasing since January, 2008 saw more dengue cases compared to the same period last year.
From Jan. 1 to May 31, 2008, a total of 614 cases and 22 deaths have been recorded by the Cebu City Health Department (CHD), which is 154.77 percent higher than the number recorded in the same period in 2007.
In the same period last year, the CHD recorded 241 cases and three deaths.
During their session yesterday, Carillo told the council that based on the trend and previous years’ records, the number of dengue cases is expected to increase starting this month.
Higher
“The number will be higher starting this month, and it means that preparations should be made now... And because the number of cases is directly related to rainfall, preparation is highly recommended,” he said after updating the council on the dengue situation.
Based on his report, Barangay Apas has the highest number of cases with six cased and one death, followed by San Nicolas central, Busay and Budlaan with five cases each.
Barangays Kamagayan, Sambag II, Suba, Zapatera, Toong and Tinago have four cases each.
Vice Mayor Michael Rama also reminded the councilors to meet and discuss prevention measures with barangay captains of areas assigned to them.
“We really have to be more bold and be equipped in our intervention and in our approach to fighting dengue so we can improve the numbers,” he said.
Amendments
And for Carillo, bolder measures call for more specific laws and stiffer penalties, that is why he will propose amendments to existing ordinances.
In Mandaue City, Health Officer Oscar Quirante said that despite the decreasing number of cases, “we are still not happy, we expect this to happen after last year’s peak.”
A Mandaue City Health Office consolidated report showed there are 150 dengue cases in all 27 city barangays from January to May 12. The number of cases during the period is less than a fourth of of last year’s 682 total cases, midway through the year.
Quirante, however, warned against being complacent. In June last year 30 dengue cases and three deaths were immediately reported in Barangay Mantuyong a week after rains started. That’s how fast and lethal the disease is, Quirante said.
“If farmers pray for the rain, we pray for the delay of the start of the rain,” he said.
Quirante credited the downward trend in the number of cases to heightened level of awareness on the disease and the fear instilled in people by the death of 10 persons last year.
He said the activation of the Barangay Dengue Brigade heightened the community’s awareness in the fight against dengue.
Barangay Banilad, which topped last year with 73 cases is now one of the lowest, registering only four cases from January up to May 12 because of their active dengue campaign.
Barangay Mantuyong, which recorded a high number of deaths last year, only has a case reported as of May 12 this year.
In Cebu City, Councilor Christopher Alix, chairman of the council committee on health, said that the CHD will continue to conduct massive misting in all barangays.
He also assured residents that with the early start of the rainy season, the health department is doing its best to address the dengue problem.
