Aliaga town hall under lockdown after 2 employees die of COVID-19
ALIAGA, Nueva Ecija – The entire municipal hall here was placed under a six-day lockdown after two of three of its employees who tested positive for COVID-19 died, Mayor David Angelo R. Vargas said on his Facebook page Tuesday.
Vargas ordered the lockdown from April 27 until May 2 amid a surge of COVID-19 cases in the town now totaling 33 active cases with seven deaths. The death figure includes two of the three town hall employees who died after being tested positive of the virus, the mayor said.
He added there is a dire need to conduct mass swab testing of all its municipal employees but the budget for the procurement of the swab test kits remain blocked and unreleased at the Sangguniang Bayan due to certain “political reasons.”
“Mayroon po tayong local transmission dito sa ating bayan, kinakailangan po nating i-swab lahat ng kawani ng munisipio, sa ngayon po naka-ipit po sa loob ng Sangguniang Bayan ang pambili ng swab kits, hindi pa po dito kasama ang mga pamilya na nagre-request na mai-swab ang kanilang mga ka-anak dahil mayroong sintomas,” said Vargas.
“Sa ngayon po nagagawan ko pa ng paraan sa pamamagitan ng sarili kong pera, pero paano na po ngayon na ang buong munisipio ang kailangang i-swab at yung mga dumadaming kaso sa atin, dahil ba sa pulitika handa silang isakripisyo ang buhay ng Aliagenyo? Para ano, para maipit ang inyong lingkod?” he added.
The mayor was also thankful to a friend named Eduard Dolosa, who donated some 130 swab kits to Aliaga upon his urgent request.
During the lockdown, Vargas said the entire town hall compound would also undergo disinfection and total cleaning.