BACOOR CITY, Cavite - Mayor Lani Mercado-Revilla on Tuesday said that the distribution of financial assistance will be delayed due to suspected and confirmed coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases in the city hall.
During an announcement streamed live through Facebook, Revilla said one of the employees from the City Treasurer's Office showed COVID-19 symptoms and is still waiting for swab test results. The employee has had interactions with the entire personnel of the City Treasurer's Office.
Two other employees from the City Legal Office have also tested positive for COVID-19, prompting the local government unit to temporarily close the main city hall building from Wednesday (April 7) to Friday (April 9) for disinfection. All employees of the City Treasurer's Office and the City Legal Office were ordered to undergo antigen testing.
This will hamper the distribution of financial assistance initially scheduled to start on April 7 as only banded employees from the City Treasurer's Office are qualified to release cash assistance.
"Ito po ay napagplanuhan na namin, supposedly magsisimula po bukas sa Mabolo I tsaka ganun din po sa Aniban IV, sa Aniban Elementary School (We've already planned for this and it was supposed to start tomorrow at Mabolo I and Aniban IV, in Aniban Elementary School)," Revilla said.
"Ngunit dahil po sa balitang ito na ibinalita sa akin ngayong gabi, na may hinihintay na PCR results mula sa isa sa mga empleyado natin sa City Treasurer's Office ay minabuti nating 'wag muna itong ipagpatuloy dahil na rin sa dami ng COVID positive patients sa ating lungsod (But because of the news that reached me tonight that we're still waiting for the PCR results of an employee in the City Treasurer's Office, we decided not to push through for now, due also to the rising number of COVID positive patients in our city)," she added.
As of April 5, the city has recorded 1,367 active cases. Many of the patients are on home quarantine as hospitals, isolation centers, and quarantine facilities remain full.
Despite the delay in financial assistance distribution, Revilla assured her constituents that social workers will continue their validation process and preparations for the payroll system. The distribution of relief goods, vaccine rollout, and other LGU services will also continue despite the temporary city hall closure.