The spread of Covid-19 infections is unavoidable with the reopening of schools and other establishments in the country, Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte said on Wednesday, Oct. 5.
However, she also said that it is up to the local government units (LGUs) how outbreaks in their respective localities should be handled.
“As expected mayroon talagang magkakasakit ng (there will be those who’ll get sick from) Covid, hindi lang sa (not only in) in-person classes, but many sa ating mga (in our) offices and establishments,” she said on the sidelines of the commemoration of #WorldTeachersDay in Abra.
The Vice President, who sits as Education chief on a concurrent capacity, noted that LGUs are tasked to decide on what best to do when there’s an outbreak in their areas because they are the “holders of data.”
“It is best that the local epidemiological service unit of the LGU ang magsasagot niyan, dahil nasa kanila po ang (who will answer that, because they have the) data and then nasa kanila po ang (they also have the) contact tracing as well as ang (the) decision kung ano po ang gagawin sa isang (what should be done in an) outbreak sa isang (in an) establishment,” Duterte explained.
READ: VP-Secretary Sara spends #WorldTeachersDay2022 in quake-affected Abra
Filipino students returned to school on Aug. 22 after more than two years of online classes due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Though it is not until November that the government mandates students to return to in-person classes, it was earlier said that schools and teachers should use September and October for the transition.
During her visit to Abra, Duterte lauded the roles of teachers in shaping the minds of young Filipinos and in nation building.
She also told Filipinos to thank the teachers for academically and morally honing the schoolchildren.
“Ang atin pong mga guro ay ating mga dangal ng bayan and dapat po nating bigyan ng importansya ang kanilang (Our teachers are the honor of our nation and we should give them importance in their) role sa ating (in our) nation building. Napakahalaga po ng ating mga guro (Our teachers are very important) in molding the youth — who is the future of our country,” Duterte told media in an interview after the #WorldTeachersDay program celebration in the Cordillera Administrative Region.