The mayor of Capas, Tarlac, changed his tune from opposing the plan to quarantine Filipinos from Wuhan, China to welcoming them and offering prayers and sympathies.
Mayor Reynaldo Catacutan issued a statement on Facebook after the Department of the Interior and Local Government said it could sanction local officials who would block the arrival of the returning Filipinos set for a 14-day quarantine at the Athletes’ Village in New Clark City (NCC) in Capas.
“We in Capas, offer our home, our sympathy, and prayers for the health of our fellow Filipinos at sana po magkaroon na ng permanenteng solusyon para sa NCoV (and hopefully, there will already be a permanent solution for the NCoV),” Catacutan said in a statement.
Tarlac officials oppose New Clark City as ‘quarantine area’ for Filipinos from China
“We Filipinos, always help each other at wala pong makakapagpabago doon. Only wrong information can destroy a relationship as strong as what Filipinos have,” he added.
The mayor said that the lack of coordination from higher authorities triggered an initial reaction from them and then asked the national government to reconsider its decision.
“We were blindsided. And we owed it to our people na mag-explain sa kanila pero wala kaming full information the very moment na lumabas po ito sa national news,” he added.
“Nagkaroon po ng spread of fear at fake news. Una dahil hindi po kami nainform, at hindi namin nai-relay sa mga tao,”‘he said.
Duque allays worries of residents over quarantine area in New Clark City
Catacutan explained that Capas residents questioned the decision to use the NCC and its impact to the venue.
“Ano kaya ang magiging future ng NCC kung magiging quarantine zone ito at biglang may magpositive. Ang NCC na ginastusan po ng napakalaki ng national government at ipinagmalaki natin bilang world-class facility. Baka masayang at magkaroon ng stigma o irreversible negative image bilang quarantine zone,” he said.
“Ang reaksyon po ng mga tao sa Capas ay hindi po akto ng pagiging maramot kundi pruweba na ganito ang nangyayari kapag hindi naiintindihan ng mga tao ang sitwasyon, problema at solusyon. Sila ay nagpapanic, natatakot, nagagalit at umaalma.”
