Baybay City in Leyte bars entry of live chicken due to avian flu
TACLOBAN CITY – Following the creation of task forces in four local government units in Leyte, Baybay City Mayor Jose Carlos Cari has issued Executive Order No. 6 prohibiting the entry and exit of live chicken, raw poultry meat products, and other poultry meat derivatives into the city as preventive and precautionary measures against avian influenza.

"However, live chicken, raw chicken meat, and processed poultry meat products coming from Southern Leyte, Cebu City, and other towns and provinces, which does not traverse the territorial jurisdiction of places with declared incidents and cases of bird flu, shall be allowed, subject to the presentation of documentary requirements," the order said.
Border checkpoints will be established in Barangay Maybog to strictly enforce the order.
All barangay officials and barangay tanods, including members of the Barangay Health Emergency Response Teams (BHERT), in the 92 barangays in Baybay City were mandated to conduct information dissemination and monitoring of the movement of poultry and all related activities.
Violators shall be prosecuted under City Ordinance No. 25, Series of 2020, dated May 21, 2020 and fined P1,000 or imprisoned for not more than six months.
They may also be charged under Section 9 of Republic Act No. 11332 that prohibits non-cooperation during health events of public concern and carries a penalty of one to six months imprisonment and a fine not exceeding P50,000, and Article 151 of the Revised Penal Code, as amended, for resistance or disobedience to a person in authority which has a punishment of one month and one day to six months imprisonment and a fine not exceeding P100,000.
All intercepted and confiscated live chickens, poultry, and its derivatives shall be disposed of accordingly.
Last week, the Department of Agriculture (DA)-8 confirmed the first case of avian flu in Leyte, at the Leyte Poultry Development Corp., a chicken breeder farm in the town of Kananga.
Workers reportedly observed nasal discharges, swollen heads, and gasping from the chickens, which led to exponential mortalities in the breeder farm in February.
The situation was reported to the DA on March 12 by the local government unit of Kananga. Rapid tests for bird flu turned out positive and at least 60,000 chickens from the farm were culled and buried.