Duterte says Cebuanos became "hardheaded", "complacent" as reasons why COVID-19 cases increased
President Rodrigo Duterte said on Monday night Cebuanos have become "hardheaded" and "complacent" and these were the reasons coronavirus disease cases significantly increased, prompting the government to place Cebu City under the enhanced community quarantine.
In a televised message, Duterte said he understands the feelings of those who did not want to stay at home amid the pandemic as he himself hates the situation.
"You know, the truth is if there is anybody who wants to be out to enjoy and even to live life normally, I am. I really don't want this lockdown. I hate it. I do not want even myself. But just what I've said, if you can't bear it and you'll be infected, sorry for you," he said.
Despite the government's reminder to avoid going out and observe minimum health standards, Duterte said Cebuanos became "hardheaded" and "complacent."
Duterte said he would visit Cebu.
"I will visit you. When I get there, I will be frank with you again because you are hardheaded. I don't want to say this...because this is not the first time that this happened. This is not the first time. This is not the first national emergency that the Cebuabos were slow to respond to. And when they start to work, they will complain because Cebuanos are recalcitrant," he said.
While others stayed at home under quarantine, Duterte said, "in Cebu, people still roamed around in their motorcycles."
"In a report to me by the military, people kept roaming around in Talisay and every day the crowds resemble that of a wet market," he added.
Cebu City is under lockdown or ECQ while Talisay City is under a modified ECQ. These two cities in Cebu are the only places with such strict classifications due to high cases of COVID-19 and high utilization of healthcare resources. The rest of the country are either under general community quarantine or modified GCQ, more relaxed classifications.
Earlier Cebu Governor Gwendolyn Garcia for a while allowed motocycle back-riding in the province even if the national government prohibits it.
But Duterte later asked Garcia that this be stopped so that other places would not follow and also to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
"Why are there many (COVID-19 cases in Cebu)? Because you were too confident and too complacent about it," the President said.
He acknowledged that many Cebuanos voted for him when he ran for office.
"But don't mix politics with this because you were already told about the disease," he said.
Duterte has ordered Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu to go to Cebu to oversee the situation and make recommendations on possible measures to be taken to contain the spread of the virus.
He said he has tasked Cimatu to oversee the situation not because he does not trust the ability of the local officials there, "but rather I said it's the penchant to go into a sort of blaming each other and then nobody would answer for anything."
As of June 22, the DOH reported an additional 630 confirmed COVID-19 cases, bringing the total number of cases in the country to 30,682. Of the additional cases, 257 came from Region 7 or Central Visayas where Cebu is located. Celerina Monte/DMS
