Residents of Negros Occidental hailing from outside of Bacolod City, who wish to return to their hometowns, should coordinate with the provincial government and/or their municipality or city’s local government unit (LGU) for travel requirements and procedures, and not with the Bacolod City government.

This is because Mayor Evelio Leonardia’s Executive Order (EO) No. 1 does not apply to them, clarified the Bacolod City Emergency Operations Center (EOC).

“Executive Order No. 1 is applicable only to Bacolod residents who will return to Bacolod,” Dr. Chris Sorongon of the EOC stressed.

Leonardia issued EO No. 1 to monitor entry of residents into Bacolod by establishing consolidated guidelines for them to follow for safe travel.

“In order to sustain the flattening curve, the City of Bacolod has implemented proactive measures such as community monitoring and surveillance, especially on the health protocols and safety measures in preventing the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic within its territory as well as to its neighboring LGUs, to ensure that no stone is left unturned in the fight against COVID-19,” part of the EO read.

Sorongon said that some non-Bacolod residents are misguided and assume that they need to coordinate with the Bacolod City government before they are allowed entry in their respective hometowns.

“We still keep receiving messages from non-Bacolod residents asking the requirements needed. If you’re returning to other cities or municipalities, coordinate with the provincial government and your respective LGUs,” he added.

Based on the data collected by the EOC, 29 persons who have entered Bacolod had tested positive for COVID-19 from October 1, 2020 to January 4, 2021.

Traveling within Western Visayas remains to be “unhampered” and “unrestricted,” said Sorongon.

He also emphasized that the negative 72-hour RT-PCR test result requirement for Bacolod returning residents must be through swabbing and not through a rapid antigen test./WDJ