A FILIPINA who skipped quarantine last month after arriving from the United States was charged yesterday by the PNP Criminal Investigation and Detection, together with her parents, boyfriend, and personnel of a hotel in Makati City.
The case against Gwyneth Anne Chua, filed before the Makati City prosecutors office, was for violation Republic Act 11332 (Mandatory Reporting of Notifiable Diseases and Health Events of Public Health Concern Act).
Chua was charged for failure to comply with quarantine or isolation order issued by a public health authority and for violation of terms and conditions of the quarantine or isolation order.
Chua, tagged “Poblacion Girl” by netizens, partied in the Poblacion area in Makati City when she was supposed to be in quarantine at the Berjaya Makati Hotel.
The eight others charged also for violation of RA 11332 were Chua’s father Allan, her mother Gemma, and her boyfriend Rico Atienza, and Berjaya Makati Hotel personnel Gladiolyn Biala (resident manager), Den Sabayo (assistant resident manager), Tito Arboleda (security manager), Esteban Gatbonton (security/doorman) and Hannah Araneta (desk/counter staff).
Chua arrived in the country on the evening of December 22. CIDG investigation showed she checked in at the hotel at 11:23 p.m but left at 11:40 p.m.
She was fetched from the hotel by her father, the CIDG said.
“Investigators confirmed the presence of Ms. Chua in one of the restaurants on the night of December 23, 2021, through CCTV footage and witness accounts,” the CIDG said in a statement.
Officials earlier said Chua went to a party at a bar in Makati City and had dinner at a restaurant.
The CIDG said Chua returned to the hotel on the evening of December 25, accompanied by her mother.
Interior Secretary Eduardo Año said Chua returned to the hotel on December 25 for an RT-PCR test that was conducted the following day. The test showed Chua was positive for COVID-19.
Seven individuals Chua had had close contact with on December 23 also tested positive for COVID-19 while a secondary contact also contracted the disease.
The CIDG said Chua, as a Filipino returning from abroad, “is obliged to follow the health protocol being imposed by IATF and DOH,” referring to the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases and Department of Health.
It said Chua violated RA 11332 when she left the quarantine hotel and disregarded quarantine procedures. The offense is punishable with a fine of P20,000 to P50,000 and imprisonment of one to six months.
The CIDG said it did not find sufficient evidence to file charges against the others who were with Chua on the night of December 23.
“However, CIDG recommends and encourages the said individuals to file a complaint before CIDG for further referral to the prosecutors office,” the CIDG also said.
CIDG director Maj. Gen. Albert Ignatius Ferro said the case should serve as a lesson to all Filipinos.
“The pandemic is still at bay and we still need to be cautions in our actions,” he said in a statement. “This is proof that the procedures and policies set by the IATF, especially on quarantine and isolation is vital for securing the welfare and wellness of the people. And everyone must adhere to the established protocols.”
Año said Chua’s actions were a “blatant violation” of the quarantine protocols. He said measures, including random inspection of quarantine hotels, will be undertaken to prevent a repeat of the incident.
SECOND VIOLATOR
Año said he has directed the PNP to investigate the case of another Filipina who arrived from the US also on December 22 and skipped quarantine.
The incident was first reported by Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo Puyat on Monday.
Puyat has said the Filipina even posted on Instagram Stories having a massage at her condo.
Año said the violator was supposed to check in at the Seda Residences in Makati upon arrival but did not show up. Instead, she went to her condominium in Bonifacio Global City (BGC) in Taguig City.
“She asked to be brought to Seda but a vehicle was waiting for her there that brought her to her condo in BGC,” said Año.
“In fairness to Seda, they made a no-show report addressed to the BOQ (Bureau of Quarantine) and DOT (Department of Tourism) in compliance with the directive,” said Año, noting that quarantine hotels are mandated to report to authorities the status of people who are undergoing quarantine in their places.
Citing initial information, Año said the woman claimed she was given an exemption for quarantine by the BOQ. He said the BOQ denied issuing one to the woman.
He said the woman took the RT-PCR test at her condo. He said personnel who were tasked to conduct a swab test on the woman were surprised because the woman was supposed to be quarantined at the Seda Residences.
“She was boasting she didn’t (go on quarantine) because she’s exempted. So we are going to investigation and we are not going to tolerate such incident,” said Año.
Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra said the National Bureau of Investigation is already looking into the incidents of violation of mandatory quarantine.
“We suspect that these are not isolated incidents. This is a public health issue and we cannot let this go unpunished,” Guevarra told radio DZBB.
Aside from possible violations of RA 11332, Guevarra said those who skipped quarantine protocols could also be charged for violating local ordinances passed to curb the spread of the COVID-19 virus.
Guevarra said those infected by the quarantine violators may also file complaint before the courts.
“They may be sued for civil damages by persons adversely affected by their actions,” he said.
OFWS
Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III said there are no quarantine skippers among overseas Filipino workers.
“We have an inventory of all OFWs, who will be deployed and are coming back. Upon their return, they won’t be able to evade us,” said Bello.
He said DOLE and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) are with the repatriated OFWs every step of the way — from arrival to their return to their home provinces.
“We are the ones that welcome them, pay for their hotel accommodation, food, and transportation costs,” Bello said.
“We have a listing of all our OFWs and all OFWs coming here are monitored by us,” he added.
As of December 2021, OWWA records show at least 900,000 OFWs have returned home amid the pandemic.
Senate majority leader Juan Miguel Zubiri filed Senate Bill No. 2470 which seeks to impose heavier penalties against quarantine violators.
The bill amends Sec. 9 or the Prohibited Acts of RA 11332 to include “non-compliance, evasion, or skipping off on mandatory quarantine or isolation” as well as individuals or entities who assist such persons “such as owners, officials, or employees of quarantine and isolation facilities, government officials, and employees, or acted as an accomplice in non-compliance.”
The bill sets a fine of not less than P500,000 but not more than P1 million, or imprisonment of one to six years to quarantine violators.
If another person gets infected from the quarantine violator and leads to the person’s permanent incapacity or death, the bill sets a P1-million fine together with payment of civil damages or imprisonment of six to 12 years.
“There’s no recovering from this pandemic if people — and quarantine facilities themselves — do not take our health protocols seriously. Knowingly posing health risk to others is absolutely harmful behavior and our laws need to reflect that,” he said. — With Ashzel Hachero, Gerard Naval and Raymond Africa
