DAVAO City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio expressed her frustration over the low compliance of several workers to basic health protocols such as wearing of face masks and physical distancing.
Duterte-Carpio said in a radio interview on Friday, September 4, that some employees treated her presence as if she is the "Covid-19."
"Kanang taga-City hall ako ray gibantayan ana nila. Kung naa si Inday Sara, manago na silang tanan ug magsunod na sila sa health protocol pero pag wala si Inday Sara, magtsismis na sila dira sa hallway (I noticed that City Hall employees are always watching me. When Inday Sara [Duterte] is around, they will abide by the health protocol, then they will go back to the hallways once I'm no longer around)," the mayor said in an interview via 87.5 FM Davao City Disaster Radio.
The mayor noted that one of the offices at the city hall, which she did not disclose, serves as the lookout whenever she already arrives.
She also said the "monitor" will then instruct the employees to abide by the health protocols.
"Tapos kung mawala ko, mawala na sab ang 'monitor.' Murag [paminaw nila] nawala na ang Covid-19 (If I will leave the area, the 'monitors' would also disperse. They feel as though the Covid-19) is gone," Duterte-Carpio said, adding the employees would then go back to breaking the Covid-19 protocols.
The mayor also noted a similar observation whenever she roams around in the city to check the public's compliance in the health protocols.
"Sa sugod pa lang, dili lage ako ang Covid-19. Dili ako ang makatakod. So dili mo mag-mask kung naa [lang] ko. Dapat all the time (Take note, from the start, I already told you that I am not the coronavirus. Do not treat my presence that way, where you will only wear your mask whenever I am around. You should wear it all times)," she said.
The mayor emphasized that there is a need to abide by the minimum health protocols to cut the transmission of the virus.
During the interview, the mayor learned that the City Administrator's Office issued an Executive Order (EO) strictly implementing the health protocols within City Hall.
According to the EO, first and second offenders will be reprimanded, and with one to 30-day suspension, respectively, while the third offense will be grounds for termination. These include plantilla, job order, and contract of service employees.
The EO states that the sanction is in accordance with the Revised Rules on Administrative Cases in the Civil Service Commission (CSC) under Reasonable Office Rules and Regulations.
Previously, Duterte-Carpio said workers who will not comply with the minimum health protocol will be fined P20 for every violation.
The City Government has around 12,000 workers.
Recently, the mayor said that 22 City Hall employees were found to have been infected with Covid-19, but details were not divulged how and where they got infected.
She detailed that 12 of the employees have already recovered, two others are on home quarantine, while the rest are under quarantine in the city's monitoring facilities.