ILOILO CITY—Mayor Jerry Treñas is again eyeing to temporarily suspend the return of locally stranded individuals (LSIs) and overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in an attempt to stop the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) here.

“We have been recording positive results from our returning residents and it is quite disappointing that some would not want to cooperate with our protocols to take swab tests we offer for free,” said Treñas in a statement released Monday, January 4.
The mayor underscored this after there was an influx of returning LSIs and OFWs during the holiday season, with some of their swab tests for coronavirus disease (COVID-19) still pending.
During a Monday meeting with city government’s task force team and representatives of major airlines and vessels, there was a suggestion to temporarily suspend the return of LSIs and OFWs for a two-week period.
The suggestion has been forwarded to the regional task force on COVID-19, which is headed by the Office of Civil Defense (OCD-6).
According to Treñas, the move was meant to curtail the entry of the new COVID-19 strain.
“We have been considerate with bringing our residents home, but if we relax our protocols, our constituents will be at stake,” Treñas added.