Valencia town mayor Ma. Katrina “Kat” Lim says she is not against the repatriation of Boholano locally stranded individuals (LSIs) and overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) but she is apprehensive about doing things with “less precaution”.
Lim, who ran unopposed in the 2019 elections as Valencia town mayor, is one of the Bohol mayors who is strong in her statements about being cautious in bringing LSIs and OFWs back to Bohol.
In a Facebook post on Wednesday, June 17, 2020, Lim aired her stand on the repatriation of LSIs and OFWs, but with reservations on the level of precaution being practiced in relation to the arrival of these repatriated Boholanos.
She said, “Let me make this clear. I am not AGAINST the repatriation of our OFWs and LSIs. What I am apprehensive of is the fact that we are doing things with less precaution. Imagine? We are allowing these people to come in to our province without being properly quarantined from their point of origin. We do not even require them of a negative test result prior to repatriation. All for what? So these National Gov’t Agencies would be pleased? So we would not be ‘charged’ administratively? It saddens me because they are supposed to be our partners. But it seems like they wanted the ‘easy way out’ of things and by doing so, they are putting thousands of lives at stake.”
She continued, “Bohol WAS Covid-FREE. If only they did not intervene with how our Provincial Officials managed the situation and if only we did not let fear win over our political will, we could have been COVID-FREE until now. But it is never too late to correct things. I believe that with our collective effort and firm decision, we could still contain the cases in our Province.”
She clarified that: “I am not posting this to show disrespect to any Official or to any Government Agency. I have high respect of my fellow public servants. I am posting this in the hope of touching the hearts of those who I know can make a BIG difference to the situation we are in right now.”
Moreover, Lim said, “It is in the spirit of public service that I encourage my fellow public servants to take a firm stand on how we are going to manage the entry of OFWs and LSIs. It is high time that we show our people that we are indeed “HONORABLE” especially in this time of crisis.”
She ended her post by saying, “God bless Bohol! God bless the Philippines!”
Her statement more or less is what she manifested in her radio interview on Wednesday over “Newsmakers ug Uban Pa” hosted by The Bohol Tribune managing editor Ardy Araneta-Batoy.
Based on the reaction of the audience as tracked by The Bohol Tribune following the interview, it showed that the audience appreciated the candor and courage of Lim to speak up and even put her neck, so to speak, on the line, risking lawsuits for her stance on the repatriation of LSI and OFW.
In the interview she maintained that the national government officials should have given local government officials more latitude to decide on the issue of repatriation of LSIs and OFWs, as the local officials are more knowledgeable on what is going on in the ground.
LSIs need not get tested in the point of origin for Covid infection. The LSIs need only to secure a medical certificate and a travel authority, according to earlier pronouncements from the provincial government.
On the other hand, OFWs may have undergone quarantine and subjected to polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test.
All arriving LSIs and OFWs are subjected to 14-day quarantine, according to reports.
In earlier reports, it was mentioned that depending on the local government unit the repatriated OFW or LSI will be subjected to a rapid antibody test or a PCR test.
As of this time, more than 4,000 LSIs and OFWs have arrived in Bohol since April 2020, according to records of the provincial government.
Of that number, five (5) LSIs and two (2) OFWs who arrived in Bohol have tested positive of Covid infection via the polymerase chain reaction test.
It was reported late Wednesday night that Cebu City government is suspending sea travels of LSIs originating from Cebu City until June 30, 2020.