The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) will be requesting additional fund allocation under the proposed Bayanihan 3 to sustain the country’s contact tracing program.
The Philippines has 254,000 contact tracers or more than the required count for the ideal one tracer per 800 persons or 135,000. A total of 15,000 were rehired according to DILG Undersecretary Jonathan Malaya. However, the allocated fund for contact tracers this year is only ₱500 million and the contracts of the rehired personnel will end in June.
“The DILG will request Congress to appropriate funds for the renewal (of contracts) of these contact tracers, so that should the situation persist, we will have enough contact tracers until the end of the year,” Malaya explained.
With the continuous increase in the number of COVID-19 cases, having enough contact tracers is just one of the solutions. The DILG underscored the importance of implementing health protocols and imposing penalties if needed.
From February 27 to March 5, more than 30,000 individuals were given a warning for not following health protocols, at least 10,000 were fined, and over 500 were arrested. Around 14,000 of those apprehended were caught not wearing a face mask and 11,000 were not properly complying with physical distancing.
Usec. Malaya clarified that arresting is not a government policy but will be done if necessary.
“The objective of what we’re doing right now is to make sure that people comply. Kasi if you do not penalize naman, wala namang maniniwala sa atin (no one will believe us),” Malaya said. – Report from Patrick de Jesus
