Mayor Jerry P. Treñas has issued an executive order (EO) urging all passengers who arrived in Iloilo from South Korea to undergo self-quarantine.

South Korea is one of the countries with the fastest growing number of confirmed COVID-19 (novel coronavirus disease 2019) cases.

“This action intends to protect the well-being of the residents of Iloilo City per Republic Act 7160 including their families, friends, and collegues, among others,” a portion of the EO read.

The EO was issued by the mayor on Tuesday, Feb. 25.

The city government is currently tracking down four Koreans who arrived in the metropolis.

The four, who were supposed to attend the Run For Jesus event in La Paz district on Feb. 27, came from the southern city of Daego, the center of South Korea’s COVID-19 outbreak.

“Daego is declared as the Special Management Zone where a surging viral outbreak is largely linked to a church threatens to overwhelm the region’s health system and Seoul officials banned major downtown rallies,” the EO stated.

“Daego Mayor Kwon Young-jin urged the city’s 2.5 million people to stay home and wear masks since most of the new cases in the southern region are linked to a church in Daego; the Shincheonji church has closed all its 74 sanctuaries around the nation and told followers to instead watch its worship services on YouTube.”

The city government also cancelled the permit it issued for the holding of the Run For Jesus event, which was expected to gather some 20,000 participants, including those from Daego City.

The cancellation was recommended by the City Health Office, City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office, Iloilo Provincial Health Office, City Legal Office, and Department of Health (DOH-6).

Treñas called a coordination meeting on Tuesday afternoon with Iloilo Governor Arthur Defensor Jr. and various concerned agencies.

On Monday, Feb. 24, the mayor also issued an EO suspending all major public gatherings set in February to March this year in the city due to COVID-19.

Meanwhile, aside from the four, there also 16 Korean nationals who arrived in Kalibo, Aklan on Monday for the Run for Jesus event.

Office of the Civil Defense (OCD-6) Director Jose Roberto Nuñez, who also heads the Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (RDRRMC), recommended to the PDRRMC of Aklan to temporarily contain in one of their facilities such as the Aklan Training Center the arriving Koreans.IMT