By Miriam G. Desacada
Tacloban City-Mayor Lemuel P. Honor of Silago, Southern Leyte had issued an executive order declaring a pork ban for a period of one month due to the African Swine Fever (ASF) disease that infected the hogs population in 11 out of 15 barangays of this coastal town.
Honor said the ban will contain the spread of ASF to remaining barangays and neighboring towns, as it will likewise protect the hog industry and residents of the town itself.
The ASF-infected barangays, based on the monitoring of the Municipal Agriculture Office (MAO), are Katipunan, Imelda, Hingatungan, Salvacion, Laguma, Tuba-on, Tubod, Poblacion District 1, Poblacion District 2, Puntana, and Sudmon.
In his pork ban order, the mayor prohibits the slaughtering of hogs, the selling of hogs and pork products from the mentioned barangays, as he described the situation as an emergency case.
Honor further prohibits the entry and exit of live hogs from these ASF-affected areas, and checkpoints were already set up to implement his order. The lifting of this ban will depend on the recommendation of the MAO soon after the month-long proscription, added the mayor. —Miriam G. Desacada