Almost 30 Maribojoc residents including barangay livestock aides (BALA), daycare workers, and village officials who were exposed to a COVID-19-stricken provincial government employee during the Capitol’s province-wide distribution of financial aid in the town tested negative for the dreaded respiratory disease.

This was confirmed Wednesday by Maribojoc Municipal Health Officer Dr. Rey Belderol.

According to Belderol, the Maribojoc residents were already cleared to discontinue their quarantine.

“Ok na, nahuman na. Ang uban nakabalik na og trabaho,” he said.

The residents were previously directed to undergo quarantine after they were tagged as first-generation contacts for their exposure to an Office of the Provincial Veterinarian (OPV) employee who tested positive for COVID-19.

Cabawan, Maribojoc Barangay Captain Doreteo Garsuta confirmed that the OPV and other provincial government offices led by Governor Arthur Yap were in Barangay Cabawan on April 26 as part of the Capitol’s province-wide distribution of barangay aid.

The event was held at the village’s barangay hall.

According to Garsuta, Yap personally handed over the financial assistance of P100,000 to village officials including himself.

“Ang sa barangay nako nakadawat ko og P100,000 worth of projects ug P25,000 na yearly na financial assistance,” he said.

The distribution of financial assistance to barangays was done simultaneously with the OPV’s turnover of cash aid to BALAs at the barangay hall.

Garsuta said that a day after the event, the OPV employee was notified that he was a first-generation contact of another COVID-19-poistive personnel of the veterinarian’s office.

The employee was then tested and yielded a positive result.

“Naay staff sa OPV nga first-gen contact sa positive sa ilang office, nakahibaw mi pagkaugma na human sa event. Maong gi-quarantine, gikuhaan og swab test pagka Sabado na hibaw-an na positive,” Garsuta said.

According to Garsuta, among those traced to have been contacts of the Capitol employee were six barangay councilors and a BALA member from his village and 22 BALAs and officials from six other villages in Maribojoc.

Earlier this month, the provincial Capitol in Tagbilaran City was closed for two days after 114 employees in various offices of the provincial government tested positive for COVID-19.

Meanwhile, Yap along with employees from various agencies of the provincial government have been making rounds in various barangays in the province to distribute financial aid. (R. Tutas, A. Doydora)