City hall, satellite offices closed down after Pampanga mayor gets COVID-19

The city hall of Mabalacat in Pampanga and its satellite offices were closed down for a week starting Monday, March 29, after Mayor Crisostomo Garbo contracted COVID-19.

Rappler learned that only the payroll personnel of the City Treasurer’s Office were permitted to report for work on Monday to give out the salaries of job order and casual city government employees. Regular employees get their salaries via automated teller machine cards.

In a statement, Garbo said he experienced fever on Friday, March 26, and had himself tested for COVID-19. While subjecting himself to isolation in his residence, he was informed that his RT-PCR test had yielded a positive result.

“I have personally informed most of the people whom I interacted with in the past week, and a full-scale contact tracing is ongoing. In spite of the fact that I always wear face mask, face shield, and observe physical distancing whenever I go out, I still urge everyone who has come in contact with me in the past few days to have themselves tested,” the mayor said.

Garbo said that he is currently inside a medical facility and is feeling better.

He appealed to his constituents to “take this pandemic seriously” and do their part in stopping the spread of COVID-19.

In late 2020, the Mabalacat City Council was also closed down after Vice Mayor Gerald Aquino contracted COVID-19.

Meanwhile, a total of 5,916 persons had been accosted in different parts of Central Luzon for violating national government health protocols and local government ordinances on stricter quarantine rules.

In a statement, the Police Regional Office 3 (PRO3) said the violators were accosted between March 22 and March 27.

“Of this number, 2,819 were not wearing face shields; 2,552 have no face masks; 20 were arrested on mass gatherings; 173 violated social distancing; 152 disobeyed other quarantine protocols such as curfew; 147 were non-compliant to [Republic Act No.] 11332, and 53 were arrested for violation of [Article] 151 (Disobedience of a Person in Authority and his Agent),” the PRO3 said.

It said that of the 5,916 violators, 3,520 were just given verbal reprimand and warning, 1,633 were fined according to local ordinances, 14 were temporarily detained, and 749 were charged. – Rappler.com