The Quezon City government on Sunday warned all barangay officials not to conduct rapid testing for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) without proper coordination pursuant to Mayor Joy Belmonte’s May 29 memorandum providing the guidelines for general community quarantine.
“It came to the city’s attention that Barangay South Triangle allegedly had 168 of its barangay employees undergo rapid testing on June 4 without informing concerned city hall offices, particularly the city health department,” its statement said in its official Viber account.
“This is a clear violation of Item No. 6 on the Responsibility of the Barangays, which requires that each barangay must obtain the approval of the city, pursuant to the recommendation of the city health department, before imposing any health or safety measures,” it read.
The lack of coordination resulted in panic and confusion as 30 employees were allegedly declared as COVID-19 positive due to their lack of proper knowledge regarding the results.
The 30 employees who tested “positive” were then required to undergo swab test at the community testing center.