BARMM sends 260 LSIs to Basilan on Feast of Sacrifice
HEALTH • 18:15 PM Fri Jul 31, 2020
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By:
Edwin O. Fernandez
Photos courtesy of Myrna Jo Henry
COTABATO CITY – On the Islamic Eid’l Adha celebration of “Feast of Sacrifice,” 260 Locally Stranded Individuals (LSIs) found for the island provinces of Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) were sent by the regional govern via the Port of Polloc.
Personnel of Rapid Emergency and Disaster Response- (READi-BARMM) accompanied the Basilan and Lamitan City-bound LSIs in boarding a commercial vessel that will ferry them home.
They are expected to arrive at Lamita City port by Saturday noon.
On Thursday (July 29), BARMM also sent 50 LSIs to Basilan via Polloc Port on board Philippine Navy vessel.
Myrna Jocelyn Henry, speaking for READi-BARMM, the 260 LSI were part of the 405 individuals sent by the national government through “Hatid Tulong” program on July 10 to Zamboanga City but were instead off-loaded to Cagayan de Oro City.
Nowhere to go to, they were fetched by the BARMM regional government, on orders of BARMM chief Minister Murad Ebrahim, and brought to Maguindanao.
“All the 405 LSIs were swabbed (RT PCR) at Cotabato Sanitarium and were subjected to 14-day mandatory quarantine by MOH,” Henry said.
A total of 120 LSIs were tested positive to COVID-19 and isolated for 14 days.
Henry said 75 LSIs for Sulu and 20 for Tawi-Tawi will be transported to their respective localities on August 2.
She lauded the support and assistance of the International Office for Migration, Unicef, Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process, Western Mindanao command and BARMM offices in attending to the needs of LSI.
Each of them received financial aid, food and non-food aid from BARMM government.
BARMM reported today two new cases of COVID-19, raising to 455 the total laboratory confirmed Covid-19 patients across the region, 274 of whom have recovered or a 60 percent recovery rate. Nine have died.