Cebu Governor Gwen Garcia continues to defy the quarantine protocols of arriving overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) amid the order of the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) that all local government units must follow national policies.
In a press conference, Garcia reiterated her position on the swab upon arrival and one to two days quarantine at the Mactan Cebu International Airport (MCIA).
“The provincial ordinance, which adopted the protocols which I set forth in Executive Order 17, is the law of the land at this point in time because no one has questioned it, no one has gone to court, much less has it been declared ultra vires (beyond its authority) by a proper court,” Garcia said.
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“We are a government of laws, not of men. And so it is not about someone saying that the provincial ordinance is null and void because it goes against a particular resolution issued by IATF,” she added.
Garcia also warns that any person who will follow the IATF protocols may face sanctions.
Garcia also signed Executive Order No. 23 on Monday to remind government staff to follow the province’s ordinance on OFW testing and quarantine.
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Cebu-based lawyers also filed a petition at a court seeking an injunction on the IATF quarantine order.
“What is highly questionable is the assumption set forth by respondents as to when to reckon the first day for purposes of determining the seventh-day viral load which is the date of arrival of returning OFWs and ROFs, which is clearly not empirical evidence,” the petition read. (TDT)
