CALAPAN CITY, Oriental Mindoro – The provincial capitol here has been put under lockdown Monday after the brother of Oriental Mindoro Governor Humerlito A. Dolor, who is also the provincial administrator, tested positive for the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
Dolor said his brother PA Hubbert Dolor reportedly manifested some minor symptoms of COVID-19 before he subjected himself to a swab test last Saturday evening at a local licensed COVID lab in Calapan City. He was tagged as Patient 2477
During the lockdown, all offices and facilities within the capitol complex will be disinfected, including the Sangguniang Panlalawigan building located at the street opposite the main capitol.
“I wish for the safety of all and this case only shows that COVID-19 spares no one and I am calling all Mindorenos to observe basic health protocols such as wearing of facemasks, social distancing and staying at home,” Gov. Dolor said.
The provincial chief executive, who had direct contact with his brother almost daily, has chosen to isolate himself for 14 days despite a negative result on him.
Dolor said all other provincial government personnel will still be manning their post at the port of entry in Batangas to assist and monitor locally stranded individuals (LSIs), repatriated oveseas Filipino workers (ROFWs) and authorized persons outside residence (APORs).
PA Dolor, in his social media post, said that the posts by the governor and all other posts about him were true, and that he was now under the care of fellow doctors in a hospital outside Mindoro.
“I don’t know who infected me since I meet a lot of people every day,” PA Dolor said.
Other offices that also announced indefinite lockdown were the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP)-Calapan branch and the regional and provincial offices of Land Transportation Office (LTO).
The governor said massive contact tracing for those who had close contact with the provincial administrator, under the supervision of the Department of Health, is already being conducted.