Oh, look who’s pissed.
Cavite Governor Jonvic Remulla has had it with his stubborn constituents and today asked the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) to take over his province and implement social distancing measures.
In a Facebook post, a frustrated Remulla said that he had lost his patience.
“It angers me that while there are 90% of you who follow the rules, there are 10% who remain obstinate and may cause the spread of COVID-19. This is annoying! If asking you to follow the rules is not enough, then I will strictly enforce it,” he threatened in Filipino.
“I have asked the Provincial Director to call our friends in the AFP and to prepare for their deployment here in Cavite,” he added.
Remulla said he would coordinate with Interior Secretary Eduardo Año, who will then supposedly order the Philippine Army and the country’s reservists to take over his province.
Read: Asymptomatic Cavite Governor says sorry for taking COVID-19 test amid shortage
(The governor is mistaken in this regard. Año oversees the Philippine National Police and not the AFP. He should ask for Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana’s help if he wants the AFP to send their troops to Cavite. Folks, Philippine Cabinet 101.)
Remulla assured residents that he only has their welfare in mind by calling on the military.
“I have no intention to harm you. I just want to implement the rules so that the 10% will follow and the 90% will be saved [from COVID-19],” he said.
The governor’s post comes after President Rodrigo Duterte tried to spook rule-breaking Filipinos and said that the police and military would take over Luzon. This after the president had received reports that people are behaving as if a pandemic does not exist, from watching underground boxing matches to participating in cockfights. Shortly after the president made his threat, the AFP, in a leaked memo, had asked its commanders to “prepare for strict implementation” of an “extensive enhanced community quarantine,” CNN Philippines reports.
The Luzon lockdown is expected to end on April 30, but Presidential Spokesman Harry Roque said that Duterte is still mulling the possibility of extending the quarantine, reports news television show Unang Balita.
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