Negros Occidental Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson and 18 others are under self-isolation after they were exposed Friday to a Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) official who tested positive for COVID-19, Provincial Administrator Rayfrando Diaz said today, January 26.
The governor and 18 employees of the DILG in Negros Occidental, including their provincial head Roselyn Quintana, were exposed during the Provincial Anti-Drug Abuse Summit at the Negros Residences in Bacolod City Friday, he said.
The governor had handed a certificate of attendance to the DILG official from Iloilo present at the affair, who was found to be positive for COVID-19, Diaz explained.
Hopefully, she does not have the highly contagious United Kingdom COVID-19 variant, he said.
Diaz said the governor and the DILG employees will be tested for COVID-19 tomorrow, which will be five days after their exposure.
The governor is under self-quarantine at his house, while the DILG employees who have no suitable place to isolate have been asked to stay at the Mambukal Resort in Murcia until their test results are released, he said.
The test results hopefully will be negative so they can return to work, Diaz said.
There is a need for everyone to continue to observe health protocols because “we can hurt people by not being responsible”, Diaz stressed.*