San Juan honors front-liners on 124th Pinaglabanan Day

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MANILA – The San Juan City government honored the dedication, sacrifices, and services of health workers and other front-liners in this year’s commemoration of the 124th anniversary of the Battle of Pinaglabanan.

“Nandito rin po ang ting mga front-liners, ang ating mga doctor, ang ating disaster response teams, ang ating kapulisan, ang ating mga bumbero sapagkat ito’y pagbibigay pugay sa kanilang serbisyo, dedication at mga sakripisyo ngayong panahon ng pandemya (We have here our front-liners, our doctors, our disaster response teams, policemen and firefighters, because we are paying tribute to their services, dedication and sacrifices during this pandemic),” Mayor Francis Zamora said during the flag-raising ceremony, wreath-laying, and lighting of the cauldron at the Pinaglabanan Memorial Shrine on Sunday.

Zamora said this year’s commemorative rites honor not only the heroism of the Katipuneros of the Pinaglabanan but also front-liners’ sacrifices, dedication, and selfless commitment to serve the country amid the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic.

He lauded the efforts of the Covid-19 front-liners just like the people behind the battle which occurred in Pinaglabanan, saying “their heroism and our unified efforts will eventually set us free from this tragedy.”

GCQ status should remain

Meanwhile, Zamora said Metro Manila should remain under the general community quarantine (GCQ) status.

“Para sa akin, hindi dapat biglain o madaliin ang pagbaba ng quarantine status natin, ang importante mayroong maayos na balanse ang ekonomiya at ang kalusugan ng mga tao at yun naman po ay nagagawa sa ilalim ng GCQ (For me, the downgrading of our quarantine status should not be hastened, what’s important is we have a good balance of the economy and the health of the people and we are doing that under GCQ),” Zamora said.

He added that businesses and other commercial establishments allowed to open during GCQ are “operating well.”

“Hindi dapat bigla na payagan ang napakaraming tao na lumabas sa kanilang mga tahanan (Allowing many people to go out of their homes should not be done hastily),” he said.

He said government moves should be done slowly but surely since the country is fighting with an unseen enemy, the dreaded virus.

“Habang wala pang bakuna, hindi natin masasabi na tayo talaga ay ligtas paglabas natin ng tahanan (While there is no vaccine yet, we cannot say that we are really safe when we leave our home),” he added.

Zamora urged the public to always observe the minimum health standards in preventing the spread of Covid-19.

“Pag nakita natin at naramdaman natin na kaya na ng Metro Manila na magpalit ng quarantine status tsaka na lang natin gawin yun ngunit para sa akin ngayon masyado pang maaga (If we could see and feel that Metro Manila is already capable of changing the quarantine status, then that’s time we should do it, but for me, now is too early),” Zamora said.

He said during the past months, the number of recoveries in the city has climbed while the fatality rate has decreased.

As of August 28, confirmed Covid-19 cases of Covid-19 in San Juan climbed to 1,850, while 1,270 people recovered from the disease.

“Ibig sabihin nyan health care system, ang ating mga doctors, ang ating mga ospital mas natuto na kung paano talaga alagaan ang mga Covid-19 patients natin (That means our healthcare system, our doctors, hospitals have learned more about how to really take care of our Covid-19 patients),” Zamora said.

He said the local government has been treating moderate and severe cases at the city-run San Juan Medical Center while those with mild symptoms and asymptomatic patients are isolated at the city’s quarantine facilities.

Zamora added that the local government is doing aggressive contact tracing, testing, and treatment while conducting targeted mass testing.

He said the testing prioritized the close contacts of the positive cases.

“Kaya mas mabuti na rin na sila [close contacts] ang inuuna natin sapagkat agad-agad ina-isolate upang hindi na nila mahawaan ang mga miyembro ng komunidad natin (It is better to test close contacts first so that we can immediately isolate them and that they would not infect other members of our community),” Zamora added.