(Eagle News)–The Baguio City government has accused the group of San Juan, Metro Manila Mayor Francis Zamora of violating health protocols when they reportedly ignored a border control checkpoint and proceeded to their designation in the city without undergoing the mandatory triage health examination.
Zamora for his part has apologized.
In a statement, Baguio Mayor Benjamin Magalong said based on a report by Philippine National Police Baguio City director Allan Rae Co, Zamora arrived in a convoy of six vehicles with uniformed personnel inside at the Kennon Road quarantine checkpoint around 230 p.m. of June 5 and was flagged down.
The driver of the lead vehicle, however, he said, slowed down and merely told the checkpoint personnel he was part of a convoy, pointed out the vehicles, and sped away with the entourage.
The checkpoint personnel, according to the report he received, radioed the Baguio City Provincial Office traffic operations center and followed the convoy to the Baguio Country Club, where they were asked to present a medical certificate stating they were of good health.
Since none was presented, Magalong said they were politely told to undergo triage examination.
He said medical personnel from the City Health Service Office were dispatched to the Baguio Country Club to “set up the triage facility purposely to ensure that containment and isolation, if needed, were done” since members of the group were already at their destination.
“From this narration of facts, it can be reasonably sensed that Baguio’s health and safety protocols have been violated and the regulatory mechanism of quarantine check and triage examination at the Naguillan facility was not followed,” he said.
Magalong said complaints have been lodged with concerned police officials, PNP Deputy Chief for Administration Police General Camilo Cascolan, San Juan City Police Director Jimmy Santos and Co “to call their collective attention that put Baguio City at serious health risk by the simple act of ignoring health and safety protocols.”
“There is utmost need to reassert the policy position of the city government that no one, regardless of rank and position, is exempted from the established and long-held safety protocols when entering the city,” he added.
San Juan Mayor Zamora apologizes
In a statement, the San Juan City mayor extended his “sincere apologies to the Baguio mayor and the people of Baguio.”
“We had no intention of breaking any checkpoint or quarantine protocols of the LGU,” he said.
He said he personally called Magalong on Sunday to “convey my apologies and to explain that this was a miscommunication in the checkpoint area.”
Magalong said Zamora told him that while he was asleep in the car at that time, the PNP escort took it on his own to ignore the border protection measure.
Zamora said in his statement that upon arrival at the hotel, the management informed them they needed to undergo a triage, “which we all fully and immediately complied with.”
He said they had gone to Baguio for his wife, who has stage 3 breast cancer, to get some rest upon her doctors’ advice.
He said he was to go back to San Juan on Sunday, and his sister-in-law was to go to Baguio to take care of his wife.
“Again, I humbly and most respectfully apologize to Mayor Benjamin Magalong and the people of Baguio City for this incident. There was never any intention not to follow Baguio’s health and security protocols. Maraming salamat po,” Zamora said.