The Regional Director of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Region 1, Dir. Corazon P. Guray, enjoined all DILG Provincial Directors, Cluster Leaders and field officers to ensure that Mayors and Punong Barangays join forces and are working together to combat dengue.

 

“It is rainy season once again. We already know that dengue – carrying mosquitoes thrive during this season especially in dirty surroundings. We should make sure that efforts exerted in previous months’ dengue clean – up drives will be sustained, or should be intensified,” Director Guray started. She shared DILG Secretary Jesse M. Robredo’s call for Mayors and Punong Barangays to team – up and lead the Aksyon Barangay Kontra Dengue (ABKD), the national government’s response to intensify the fight against dengue outbreak.

 

“The ABKD is an inter – agency cooperation strategy which also aims to reduce dengue cases and control dengue transmission” the Director added.

 

In the implementation of the ABKD, the Department enjoined punong barangays to spearhead and intensify the conduct of clean-up drives through the mobilization of volunteers, residents and Barangay Health Workers and Health Emergency Response Teams and Tanods.

 

Director Guray further strengthened the Department’s call by reiterating Secretary Robredo’s statement, “if we really want zero-dengue incidence, this (clean-up activity) should be a regular activity in all barangays that should be participated in by residents and other concerned sectors.”

 

On the other hand, city and municipal mayors, should cause the enactment of an ordinance embodying measures on dengue prevention and control, as well as allocate funds for dengue prevention and control, subject to national and local rules and regulations.

 

Moreover, Director Guray emphasized the directive of the Secretary for Mayors to ensure that punong barangays under their supervision should carry out the “conduct of information campaign relative to the Ovicidal / Larvicidal (OL) – Trap system as a strategy to control and detect impending dengue outbreaks.”

 

The OL Trap System, a device consisting of a tumbler, strips of plywood and pellets, can detect population of the Aedes mosquito, the carrier of dengue, and acts as an early warning signal to pre-empt any impending dengue outbreaks.

 

Punong Barangays should also assist in the identification of distribution centers or stores for the kits, mobilize the Barangay Health Teams as distribution agents of OL-Trap products, and allocate funds to sustain the continuous supply of OL-Trap materials for free to their barangay constituents.

 

Similarly, city or municipal health officers are expected to conduct massive information campaign relative to the OL-Trap system; monitor the health situation; provide data on dengue cases to partner agencies; extend technical assistance in the conduct of training and orientation relative to dengue prevention and control; devise a scheme of providing support fund to ensure sustainability of dengue prevention and control; and ensure that dengue patients are provided with timely and proper medical attention.

 

Last year, a total of 25,533 dengue cases have been reported, which resulted to the death of 180 patients where most of the victims were children ages 1 to 15 years old.

 

The DILG designated a regional focal person on dengue to monitor the actions undertaken by the city, municipal and barangay governments and require them to submit quarterly reports to the DILG Secretary.