Due to COVID-19: City closed down 70 establishments

CEBU, Philippines —  Since the start of the COVID-19 outbreak, the Cebu City government has already closed down at least 70 business establishments through the Business Permit and Licensing Office (BPLO).

"Atong ipasabot nga kini nga mga establisemento boluntaryo nga mipasira human nga giinspeksyon sa BPLO ug nakita ang ilang kakuwang sa pagtuman sa minimum health standards sama pananglit sa pagsul-ob sa mga mask ug shield diha sa tagsa-tagsa ka mga trabahoan, ang pag-put up og mga barriers ug ingon man ang distancing sa mga lamesa sa matag opisina, ang disinfection protocols, ug ang pagsusi sa temperatura sa mga trabahante nga mosud niana nga mga establisemento," said City Legal Officer Rey Gealon, the city's spokesperson.

"Kining tanan kinahanglan ma-comply sa mga employers kay kung di kini ma-comply, pagasirad-an. Nalipay lang ta kay ang uban, boluntaryo gyud nga mipasira ug gani kadtong uban gipahimangnoan lang na i-comply apan nipasira gyud sila, ilabi na kadtong nakita nga dunay nag-positive sa ilang mga trabahante atol sa contact tracing nga gipahigayon sa mga contact tracing teams dinhi sa Dakbayan sa Sugbo," he added.

Of the 70 establishments, seven have the longest suspension of work which lasted up to 14 days, while others opened after three to five days of closure to implement the interventions that include the extraction of patients and their transfer to a facility and disinfection of the workplace, among others.

Gealon said of the seven establishments having the longest suspension of work, four have already opened.

"Ang administrative penalty mao ang suspension of work nianang maong partikular nga establisemento ngadto sa specific area or worksite kon diin didto nag-positive ang maong empleyado. Pasabot nga sa usa ka establisemento, kon daghan kaayo og mga opisina unya naa sa opisina ang nag-positive, kanang opisinaha sa maong establisemento maoy sirad-an.  Dili ang tibuok establisemento," said Gealon.

Meanwhile, the Cebu Bankers Club has assured the depositing public that banks in Cebu remain to be safe while providing essential financial services to its clients.

"Although there were reported cases of COVID transmissions in some of our member banks, however, these are all isolated cases only. Their respective bank management has done immediate actions by disinfecting these premises and observing lockdown for several days in compliance with the standard health protocol for the safety of the banking community," said Romeo Comabig, president of Cebu Bankers Club, in an official statement.

The Cebu City government earlier placed a bank under lockdown after 12 employees tested positive for COVID-19.

Comabig said the banking industry is one of the sectors that fully adhere to the health protocols set by the different government agencies.

He said banks have placed various health measures to control the spread of the virus such as requiring face masks and face shields for bank personnel and clients while inside the branch and checking the body temperature before entering the branch.

As part of their efforts to prevent the spread of COVID-19, a logbook is made available for contact tracing; alcohol and hand sanitizers are available at the entrance and strategic locations in the lobby; transparent plastic/acrylic barriers are placed in between clients and bank personnel; limited number of clients are allowed inside the branch to observe social distancing; and staggered lunch breaks for branch personnel are observed. Communal food items are not allowed.

It was also stressed that bank personnel are not allowed to cross-over to other branches to mitigate the spread of infection. However, if the branch is compromised, the branch undergoes deep disinfection while the exposed personnel go to immediate test and self-quarantine.

"We assure the public that when a branch is open for service, all health measures are in place taking into consideration the health and safety of our clients as our primordial concern," said Comabig.

The Cebu Bankers Club also encouraged their clients to avail of the online banking services their respective banks are offering as this will not only protect them from the risk of infection but will give them ease and convenience while banking from home or office. — GAN (FREEMAN)