DAVAO CITY – Mayor Sara Duterte here said the city government is looking for more swabbers and doctors as the city intensifies its testing to contain the spread of COVID-19.

The city recorded 173 new cases of COVID-19 last Tuesday, bringing the total number of recorded cases to 16,101 with 1,111 active cases.

Four fatalities and 94 recoveries were also recorded on Tuesday to bring the total number of COVID-19 deaths and recoveries here to 739 and 14,251, respectively.

“We need 30 more new swabbers because duna pud mga panghitabo nga muresign og mawala lang kalit atoang mga swabbers. We need to continually recruit and train para dili jud ta mahutdan og swabbers (We need 30 more new swabbers because there are times that they resign or they just disappear. We need to continually recruit and train so we won’t run out of swabbers),” she said in a radio interview last Monday.

Aside from swabbers, Duterte said the city continues to recruit medical doctors. “Ginaingon nato sa ilaha we are seeking their help until Dec. 31 (We’ve been telling them that we’re seeking their help until Dec. 31). They will be paid just to help with the testing, tracing, isolation, quarantining, and vaccination," she said.

The Davao City mayor added that she offered the Rizal Park to the Davao City COVID-19 Task Force as a possible swabbing site. “Gusto nila gamiton ang People’s Park but nag-ingon man gud ko sa ilaha nga magreserve ta og isa ka park sa other unforeseen circumstances, kanang dili COVID-19 because ang kani man gud mga disgrasya og mga emergency og disaster dili nato ni sya mapredict kung kanus-a mahitabo so nag-ingon ko magbilin ta og isa ka lugar para sa dili nato makit-an nga manghitabo (They want to use People’s Park but I told them we will reserve one park for unforeseen circumstances, not COVID-19 since we can’t predict when accidents, emergencies, and disasters will happen. That’s why I told them we reserve one park for unforeseen circumstances),” she said.