Pateros Mayor Miguel Ponce III reminded people to continue wearing face masks as they observe Holy Week to prevent the spread of Covid-19.

He said Pateros is “zero Covid-19” but other local government units still have cases.

“Tayo ay papasok sa Semana Santa. Tayo ay magkakaroon ng mahabang weekend mula Huwebes hanggang Linggo. Kaya’t ang lahat ay pinapaalalahanan natin, meron pa rin po tayong problema pagdating sa Covid-19 bagama’t zero Covid po ang bayan ng Pateros sa ngayon. Ang pagkakalaam ko po ay sa ibang lugar ay mayroong nadedetect pa na Covid virus kaya’t maaaring magkaroon na naman po ng hawaan. (We are entering the Holy Week. We are going to have a long weekend from Thursday to Sunday. That is why everyone is reminded that we still have a problem when it comes to Covid-19 although we are zero Covid in Pateros at present. What I know is that in other areas, the Covid virus is still detected so there is a possibility that there will be transmission),” he said in a Facebook live video on April 13.

Ponce added, “Kaya’t ibayong pag-iingat pa rin ang pinapakiusap namin sa lahat. Magsuot po tayo lagi ng face mask at tayo po ay mag-ingat pa rin lalo na po pag tayo ay nakikihalubilo sa mga masisikip na lugar upang hindi na po tayo magkaroon pa ng panibagong problema tulad ng dati. (That is why we appeal to everyone to be extra careful. Wear face masks always and be careful especially when we mingle in cramped places so that we will never have a new problem like before).”

Ponce also urged people to get vaccinated and receive their booster shots amid the threat of the Omicron XE, a mutation of the Omicron BA.1 and BA.2 variants that has been detected in other countries.

“Alam nyo nagkakaroon pa rin ng surge sa ibang bansa katulad nga po ng Shanghai sa Tsina. Sila ay nagkakaroon ng malawakang lockdown. Kasama din ang South Korea. At hindi po talaga malayo na maaaring dito po sa ating bansa ay magkaroon pa rin ng pagtaas ng Covid kung tayo po ay hindi mag-iingat dahil ito po ay mga karatig na lugar natin (You know, surge in cases is happening in other countries like in Shanghai in China. They have widespread lockdown. South Korea is also included. And it is not far fetched that in our country, there will be an increase in Covid if we are not going to be careful because these are our neighboring places).”

In observance of the Holy Week, the Pateros municipal government said there is no vaccination schedule for Maundy Thursday and Holy Friday. Vaccination will resume on April 18.

Ponce said the best defense against a surge in cases and the Omicron XE threat is vaccination or getting booster shots.

He urged people who have not received their booster shots to go to vaccination centers. He said the municipal government also administers booster shots to people outside Pateros.

“Mahalaga ang booster. Ito ay dagdag proteksiyon para sa ating lahat (Booster is important. This is an added protection for all of us),” he said.

Ponce also said that only church-sponsored activities will be allowed during Holy Week.