THE Municipal Government of Madridejos has ordered residents who showed up at the welcome ceremony for participants of the Suroy-Suroy Sugbo SMB (Sta. Fe, Madridejos, Bantayan) Escapade on Friday, Nov. 27, 2020, to monitor for symptoms related to the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19).

Photos of residents not observing physical distancing have gone viral on social media.

In a post on the town’s Facebook page, Mayor Salvador Dela Fuente urged those who attended the gathering to take precautions, as there was a possibility that someone in the crowd was positive for Covid-19 but was asymptomatic.

“Even though all of us were wearing face masks and were holding the activity in an open view and near the sea, I’m still urging those who attended to do all precautionary measures,” Dela Fuente said in the FB post.

In an interview with reporters on Saturday, Nov. 28, the mayor said they are monitoring residents for any symptoms of the disease.

He said he and other local officials couldn’t prevent the people from crowding, especially since they were eager to see outsiders after so many months.

Maria Lester Ybañez, head of the provincial tourism, said Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia always attract a crowd wherever she goes.

“If you’ve been with her, anywhere she (Garcia) goes that has always been our problem. People want to see her,” Ybañez said in a mix of Cebuano and English.

As of Friday, Madridejos only had one active Covid-19 case.

According to a Nov. 26 report, the town has a total of 107 confirmed cases with three deaths. (ANV, NDT / JKV)