LACK of testing kits, facilities, and medical professionals can only be offset at least for now by the strict enforcement of "stay at home" policy, said Bacolod Vice Mayor El Cid Familiaran in an interview Monday, March 30.
But this necessity should be acted immediately because it is the best solution to preventing coronavirus disease (Covid-19) from reaching irreversibility level, he said.
"Mass testing, identifying and containing potential hotspots, are impossible because we lack testing kits other basic medical facilities, and medical professionals; this is compounded by lack of available supply in the market," the vice mayor added.
Familiaran said that "without these materials, we can't track who among the 150,000 with Home Quarantine Pass (HQP) and the 100,000 to 150,000 more given exemptions, constantly moving in the City alone, are or could be potential Covid-19 cases."
"This more or less 300,000 residents are virtual hotspots, and the only quality testing kits managed by medical professionals can prevent them from becoming carriers," he added.
Other measures are already in place, like the monitoring of persons under monitoring (PUM) by Bherts (Barangay Health Emergency Response Teams), the case tracking and border controls and checkpoints by Philippine National Police and local government unit personnel, and even the barangay food and relief distribution system.
Familiaran said the food relief operations began Monday, March 30, and hopefully, they will be able to cover the widest number of households in few days so there would be no negative reactions on the stay at home policy, which practically deprived especially the poor of their daily sustenance.
The vice mayor also expressed some frustrations because the current crisis has exposed the insensitivity, lack of care and lack of discipline of many of our people.
"I understand fully well the predicaments of our people especially the poor, but in this time of crisis, they should also demonstrate their cooperation with the government in undertaking preventive measures, instead of insisting their own ways of life," he said.
Despite the odds, Familiaran remained positive saying "giving up is not an option, cooperation is a must, and by God's grace we will overcome this."