By Donna Rempillo SAN FERNANDO, Pampanga – Governor Dennis ‘Delta’ Pineda has ordered the indefinite suspension of classes in all levels in both public and private schools in the province starting Monday, March 16, as a precautionary measure against the threat posed by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Governor Dennis ‘Delta’ Pineda
(Pampanga PIO / MANILA BULLETIN) Pineda announced the suspension of classes along with the confirmation of the first case of a Capampangan who tested positive for the coronavirus. The patient is now confined at a private hospital in Metro Manila. Pineda told reporters that the wife of the patient sought help from the provincial government, saying her husband was showing symptoms of infection. “Ito pong taong ito ay isang Grab driver sa Clark Freeport at ang kaniyang destinasyon ay ang buong Pampanga. Ang taong ito ay nasa Metro Manila, na sa isang private hospital at kasalukuyang ginagamot, doon po nalaman na positibo ang taong ito (He is a Grab driver at Clark Freeport, and his destination was all over Pampanga. He is now in Metro Manila in a private hospital where he was tested positive (for COVID-19)],” Pineda said. The provincial government is now tracking all closed contacts the patient had. But Pineda underscored that a confirmation of one positive case of COVID-19 infection in Pampanga was not enough for the public to go into chaos. “To all Cabalen, all is under control,” he said. The governor also expects some residents of Metro Manila to come in to the province before the March 15 start of a community quarantine is imposed in the National Capital Region. “Sigurado po meron pa ring aalis ng Metro Manila dahil hindi pa malinaw kung anong magiging sitwasyon sa Metro Manila. So we expect na meron po talagang pupunta sa probinsya natin dahil how many minutes lang po ang distansya natin sa kanila [It is sure that there are still people going out of Metro Manila because we still do not know the situation, so we expect that there will be people from Metro Manila who will come to our province because of our close proximity), Pineda noted. He pleaded anew to the public “not to engage in panic buying because the province has enough supplies of food and commodities.” “In the event that the province will suffer the same faith as Metro Manila, the provincial government is seeking the cooperation of the public to follow strictly all guidelines released by the national government,” Pineda said.