* Davao City hits herd immunity target, Mayor expresses gratitude to front liners
* Bares more city infrastructures in 2022
Davao City – Like all world leaders, Mayor Inday Sara Duterte considers Covid 19 pandemic and the enormity of its impact on the city residents, the economy and the growth of the city as the biggest challenge in the 2021.
The city has not been shielded from the reeling effect of the dreaded corona virus resulting in the loss of jobs of not a few residents especially among daily wage earners. For months however the medical front liners have to take care of thousands of covid positive cases which, in the entire Davao region, has reached beyond 23,000 barely two months ago. It is now down to 380 a tuve cases.
Mayor Inday Sara with the city health office led by Dr. Josephine Villafuerte went on unrelenting vaccination drive resulting in dramatic decrease of active cases. The Department of Health last week declared Davao City as among those which had achieved the targeted herd immunity.
Mayor Sara, in cognizance of the feat achieved by the medical front liners said: “Let me express my gratitude to our frontliners for their sacrifices and committed performance of their duties in the fight against Covid 19. Your dedication is essential in our battle against the pandemic”.
Despite the successful vaccination campaign the mayor urged her constituents to observed the basic health protocols, among these: the wearing of face mask, social distancing, washing or disinfecting of hands with alcohol.
In an interview with the Mindanao Journal Mayor Inday Sara said that the construction of the coastal road of the city is ongoing. She revealed that next year the 540- meter detailed design and construction of the four-lane bridge in Bucana will start. The project, she said, will be funded by China.
The city also has completed the first phase of the underground laying of power and communications cables in C. M. Recto Avenue and San Pedro street. The landmark project was among the priority programs of the mayor.
The city also embarked on a number of road infrastructures along with the Department of Public Works and Highways. The concrete road network is expected to improved the movements of products from remote barangays of the city and will result to the economic condition and productivity of communities benefitting from the various roads and bridges infrastructures.
In the political front, Mayor Inday Sara who had been expected to run for President but opted instead to run for vice president, has been consistently leading in the surveys. She had teamed up with Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. who is also the top choice for President.
Ask about her reaction on the identical results of surveys done by the traditional survey firms like the Social Weather Station, Pulse Asia and Publicus, Mayor Inday Sara said: “The surveys are reflective of the desire of the people. And while the results are encouraging, they also represent the challenges that I should be facing in the coming days leading to the May 2022 elections. There is a need to reach more and more Filipinos, and we hope to unite everyone to join the cause of making the Philippines a stronger nation”.
Asked what are her expectations for 2022, the mayor quipped: “For Filipinos to be united for the Philippines”. (Jun Ledesma)