THE Iloilo Provincial Government is not relaxing its campaign against dengue despite the decline in the number of cases in the province.
Governor Arthur Defensor Jr. said the province will relaunch the "4 o'clock habit" to reduce the risk of having dengue in the community.
The "4-o'clock habit" is a vector control strategy wherein the entire province will have a simultaneous cleanup drive at 4 p.m. every day to search and destroy the breeding sites of mosquitoes. Dengue-carrying mosquitoes are known to be most active starting at this hour.
Last week, Defensor convened with the rural health officers and appealed to the mayors to include the 4 o'clock habit in the dengue ordinance.
"We don't want it to slip out of our consciousness. We want this to graduate into a cleanup drive for all purposes, like for tourism," Defensor said.
The launching and kickoff will be on September 23.
Defensor attributed the decrease in dengue cases to the communal efforts of the barangays in minimizing the spread of the disease.
Based on the record of the Hospital Management Office as of September 12, dengue patients admitted in 13 province-run hospitals dropped to 250. (PR)