The ‘tracing czar’ insists on resignation due to irrevocable Baguio party criticism

BAGUIO CITY – Mayor Benjamin Magalong irrevocably resigned as head of the country’s COVID-19 contact tracing effort after admitting health protocols were violated at a party he had attended with his wife, Arlene, nearly two weeks. before.

“It pains me to see my family, and my constituents, distressed by this, but I am committed to holding myself accountable and doing whatever it takes to rectify this misstep,” Magalong said Thursday in his resignation letter to Carlito Gálvez Jr. main executor of the National Working Group against COVID-19 (NTF).

“As much as I have done my best to fulfill my duties for the task force, this incident has been a reminder that a higher standard is always expected of me,” said Magalong, who is also called the Tsar of contact tracing.

Not accepted

Gálvez told reporters in Manila on Friday that he was “deeply hurt” when Magalong handed him the resignation letter.

“But we did not accept it because Mayor Magalong had done a lot for us,” said Gálvez. “He is very professional. It will be a great loss. “

Presidential spokesman Harry Roque said on Friday that the resignation was not accepted and that President Duterte had full confidence in Magalong and expected him to implement the law regarding violations of health protocols during the celebration of the 44th birthday of the celebrity of social media Tim Yap at The Manor in Baguio City on January 17.

Roque said the event was under investigation and that Magalong had acknowledged that flaws had been made.

“Let the process continue,” he said.

Presidential chief legal adviser Salvador Panelo praised Magalong for his “finesse” and finesse “in resigning, but said the country still needs the mayor’s help to stop the spread of the coronavirus.

“We need all the hands to work. Therefore, the continued assistance of those with proven competence will be invaluable in our fight against COVID-19, ”said Panelo.

Responsibility

However, Magalong insisted that his resignation was irrevocable.

In a text message to the Inquirer, the mayor of Baguio said: “Accountability is important to me.”

Magalong resigned days after he was heavily criticized on social media for allegedly tolerating “outright rapes” during the birthday party he and his wife were invited to.

Some people who attended broke quarantine rules, did not keep their masks and maintained physical distancing.

In his letter to Gálvez, Magalong said he should have made an immediate “timely correction” of the violations he had witnessed.

Magalong said that he and his wife arrived around 8 p.m. for the Yap party and saw that minimum standard health protocols were being followed.

Yes, KC pays a fine of P1,500

The lapses occurred during dinner and when a group of artists invited visitors to participate in a traditional community dance.

But Magalong said she made sure to remind guests about adhering to health protocols.

Some of the guests, including Yap and Magalong’s wife, were photographed without masks.

Magalong said that his wife would be fined like the others.

On Thursday, Yap and one of her guests, actress KC Concepción, each paid P1,500 in fines for removing their masks and for failing to comply with local quarantine ordinances. Magalong’s wife paid a fine of 1,000 pesos.

The Manor paid P9,000 for violating the quarantine regulations it was supposed to enforce during the party.

The hotel was also cited for failing to obtain authorization from the city government to serve as the venue for the Yap party.

Birthday parties are allowed under Baguio’s modified general community quarantine, but only for a limited number of people.

The Manor Hotel was also investigated for serving alcoholic beverages beyond the amount set by the government, according to the city’s information office.

Tourist promotion

In several television interviews, Yap said that he organized the dinner to promote tourism in Baguio.

He said they wore masks during the occasion, but had to remove them when dinner was served and while mingling with the dancers.

“It was never my intention to offend anyone. I would never do anything that would put anyone in danger, “Yap said in an apology to the public.

The party drew widespread condemnation on social media and among Baguio residents who said it was insensitive given the increase in infections in the city.

From March last year to Thursday this week, Baguio had isolated and treated a total of 4,894 COVID-19 patients, and its hospitals and isolation facilities had confined 535 active cases.

DOH appeal

The Undersecretary of Health, María Rosario Vergeire, also urged Magalong to remain in office.

“We in the [Department of Health, or DOH] you think you should stay in that position. It has helped a lot in the country’s contact tracing efforts, ”he said.

Magalong was particularly effective in assisting in contact tracing in the Bontoc and Mountain Province provinces, and in the Cordillera Administrative Region, where the majority of cases of the new, more infectious COVID-19 variant were detected, he said. Vergeire.

“He is the one leading the contact tracing efforts for this particular variant,” he said.

In a statement, Gálvez appealed to the public to “withhold his judgment [against Magalong] and let the investigation run its course. “

The NTF assured the public that those who committed rapes during the Yap party would be held accountable.

PMA graduates

“We believe that the incident does not speak to the true character of Mayor Magalong or define him as a public servant. We would like to express our full support for Mayor Magalong, ”Gálvez said of his fellow graduate of the Philippine Military Academy (PMA).

Magalong graduated in 1982, three years before Gálvez.

Galvez said Magalong was a “man of honor, decency and commitment.”

The NTF chief said Magalong was a “pioneer” in the prevention and mitigation of COVID-19.

He said the mayor of Baguio had traveled to different parts of the country to assess the health situation in the communities and provide guidance to local governments on how they could expand their contact tracing capacity.

Magalong was a former head of the National Police Criminal Investigation and Detection Group and used police investigation methods to track down people exposed to the coronavirus. —WITH REPORTS FROM DEXTER CABALZA, LEILA B. SALAVERRIA AND PATRICIA DENISE M. CHIU

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