THE Department of Health (DOH) has located one of the eight Returning Overseas Filipinos (ROFs) from South Africa who arrived in the country before the government imposed a ban on all incoming flights from South Africa and 13 other countries.
In a brief statement, Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said the ROF is under home quarantine, has no coronavirus disease (COVID-19) symptoms, and has tested negative in the RT-PCR test conducted on him.
Vergeire said the DOH, particularly the Bureau of Quarantine (BOQ), is still looking for the seven other ROFs.
She said the hunt has been difficult because three of the travelers gave their manning agency’s contact number but not their personal numbers, one gave an incorrect number, and another an incomplete number, while the remaining two remain “uncontactable.”
“We are continuously getting in touch with our local government units and other partners to be able to contact these individuals,” said Vergeire.
BOQ deputy director Roberto Salvador, Jr. in a televised public briefing, said they have already coordinated with the PNP and local government units to track down the travelers, which he said gave provincial addresses in their arrival forms.
Salvador said they are also coordinating with the manning agencies of the seven ROFs.
He stressed the back tracing is necessary in order to ensure the health conditions of the recent arrivals from South Africa.
“We need to contact them to make sure that they have no symptoms while undergoing home quarantine,” Salvador said.
In a separate radio interview, Health Secretary Francisco Duque III warned future arrivals to make sure that they provide the government with true and accurate contact information.
He said giving false contact information, especially amid a public health emergency, is considered illegal.
“It is unacceptable for them to place wrong information, false information. When we do back tracing, it would make it very difficult for the government to find them,” said the health chief.
“Everything you put in there, they should be true. Otherwise, you can be charged, especially since we are in a public health emergency,” Duque added.
The eight travelers are among the 253 passengers from South Africa whose movements are being back traced by the BOQ as part of the surveillance efforts amid the threat of the Omicron variant, which was first detected in South Africa.
The Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases appealed to the still missing ROFs to get in touch with their local health authorities and submit themselves to the government to be re-tested for COVID-19 and to be quarantined, if necessary.
“Whoever you are, please come immediately and report yourselves, submit yourselves for testing immediately and report yourselves immediately to authorities. We’re not scaring you, we want your cooperation,” Cabinet Secretary and IATF co-chairman Karlo Nograles yesterday said in an interview with CNN Philippines.
He said the government does not want to scare off the seven even as he echoed Duque’s warning that persons who provide wrong or false information, especially amid a public health emergency, may be held liable for violating Republic Act 11332 or the Mandatory Reporting of Notifiable Diseases Law.
RED LIST
In a statement yesterday afternoon, Nograles announced that the IATF has approved the escalation of France to the country’s “Red List of countries/territories/jurisdictions” effective December 10 until December 15.
Nograles said passengers who have been to France within 14 days immediately preceding their arrival in the Philippines and who will arrive on or after 12:01 a.m. of December 10 but before 12:01 a.m. of December 13 shall be required to undergo facility-based quarantine for 14 days, with an RT-PCR test on the seventh day, with day one being the date of arrival.
Notwithstanding a negative RT-PCR result, the completion of the 14-day quarantine is required.
Beginning December 13 until the end of December 15, entry in any port of the Philippines shall not be allowed for passengers coming from or who have been to France within the last 14 days prior to arrival in the Philippines, regardless of their vaccination status.
Only Filipinos returning to the country through government-initiated or non-government-initiated repatriation, and Bayanihan flights may be allowed entry, subject to existing testing and quarantine protocols for Red List countries/territories/jurisdictions.
The testing and quarantine protocols for minors shall follow the testing and quarantine protocols of the parent/guardian traveling with them, regardless of their vaccination status.
Children 3 years old and below, regardless of the country of origin, shall be exempt from the requirement of presenting a negative RT-PCR test result before boarding the flight, unless symptomatic.
Nograles said passengers who will arrive prior to 10 December 10 and those who are currently undergoing quarantine are required to complete the testing and quarantine protocols in effect at the time of their arrival.
All passengers, whether Filipinos or foreigners, merely transiting through France shall not be deemed as having come from or having been to said country if they stayed in the airport the whole time and were not cleared for entry into such country by its immigration authorities.
Upon arrival in the Philippines, they shall comply with the applicable testing and quarantine protocols for passengers who have not been to any Red List country/territory/jurisdiction.
Other countries in the Philippines’ Red List include South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Lesotho, Eswatini, Mozambique, Austria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Belgium, and Italy.
Meanwhile, the Bureau of Immigration yesterday said Filipino and foreign diplomats from countries in the Red List are already exempted from the travel ban and are now allowed entry in the country.
Immigration Commissioner Jaime Morente said the new policy exempting diplomats from the travel ban was adopted under a resolution issued by the IATF last November 25.
According to Morente, the exemption also extends to the diplomats’ qualified dependents, such as their spouses and children.
“We have already instructed our immigration officers in the different ports, as well as foreign airlines, about the travel ban exemptions for immediate implementation,” Morente said.
Those covered by the exemption are Philippine officials and their delegations on official travel abroad, Philippine diplomats and their dependents returning to the Philippines at the end of their tour of duty, Philippine foreign service posts personnel arriving for home office consultation or with approved leave of absence, and foreign diplomats and their dependents.
ALERT LEVEL
PNP chief Gen. Dionardo Carlos yesterday said it is not yet time to lower the country’s quarantine status to the lowest Alert Level 1, noting that people are already becoming complacent of health protocols under the current Alert Level 2.
“The time isn’t ripe yet since it’s the holiday season and we have observed more people becoming complacent to go outdoors, disregarding health protocols, and unmindful of the risks,” said Carlos.
There have been talks about a possible shift to the Alert Level 1 over the past weeks due to the improved COVID-19 situation in the country.
Carlos said a shift to a lower alert level may negatively impact the observance of minimum health standards. — With Jocelyn Montemayor, Ashzel Hachero and Victor Reyes
