The city government expressed fears that the Omicron variant of COVID-19 virus may have already penetrated Puerto Princesa as the City Health Office (CHO) records a spike of COVID-19 cases after the holidays, thus, triggering the city government and other stakeholders to call for an emergency meeting earlier today, January 5.
City Administrator Atty. Arnel Pedrosa said there had been a sudden spike of COVID-19 cases recorded in the city following the consecutive gatherings in celebration of Christmas and the New Year.
“Tumaas ng konti ‘yung local case natin, so mayroong suspicion na baka Omicron na, pero hindi pa lang na-confirm,” Pedrosa said in an interview with Chris ng Bayan.
This triggered city officials and other agencies to call for an emergency meeting to discuss additional protocols that may be imposed if an Omicron variant case may arise in the city any time soon.
Meanwhile, while the National Capital Region (NCR) is still under Alert Level 3 until January 15, local travelers en route to Puerto Princesa and the rest of the province may soon face stiffer requirements as cases in the nation’s capital continue to peak.
In an earlier live press briefing of Malacañang, President Rodrigo Duterte has announced that he is under possible consideration to approve the National Inter-Agency Task Force’s (IATF) recommendation to implement the ‘No Vaccine, No Labas Policy’ nationwide.
This policy is already being implemented in Metro Manila while the rest of the country is still waiting for a confirmation of the president.