Summer is always a good time for swimming, except for when there’s an ongoing pandemic.
Through a stern announcement on Facebook, Caloocan City Mayor Oscar Malapitan on Sunday ordered the immediate closure of a resort that was found to be operating despite standing quarantine protocols.
Aside from revoking the resort’s business permit, Malapitan is also bent on suing the owner of the Gubat sa Ciudad resort after photos surfaced online on Sunday afternoon which showed a horde of no less than a hundred people swimming and enjoying the resort’s amenities. No one in the photo can be seen wearing a mask nor consciously practicing social distancing.
According to Malapitan, this is a clear violation of the set of rules enforced by the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) for NCR+, which outlines that no large gatherings are allowed and that leisure businesses are prohibited from operating under the current MECQ status of the NCR+ Bubble. Only resorts within GCQ and MGCQ areas are allowed to admit patrons.
The local executive will also extend the investigation to include the authorities of Barangay 171 where the resort is located, as well as to all those who are included in the photos.
Malapitan also directed the recent visitors of the resort to undergo mass contact tracing, swab testing, and constant surveillance for COVID-19 symptoms.
The Philippines posted 7,174 new coronavirus cases on Sunday. As a continued effort to curb the surge of cases, the national government extended the MECQ status of the NCR Bubble+, which includes all Metro Manila cities and adjacent provinces, until May 14.
