The municipality of Sadanga in Mountain Province has issued a moratorium on wedding celebrations to keep the town free from coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19), especially during the holiday season.

“Effective today until further notice, the conduct of wedding celebrations in the community which inevitably draw huge crowds is hereby strongly discouraged,” Mayor Gabino Ganggangan said in an advisory dated Dec. 16.

He said the order was agreed upon by the municipal task force members in compliance with the resolution of the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) which prohibits mass gathering.

Cordillera people see wedding celebrations as a feast that lasts for days with several animals butchered coupled with dancing and drinking of native wine.

Ganggangan said the recent wedding celebrations that happened in the barangays within the municipality led to an influx of relatives and visitors from the town and outside the province.

He said others came from “red areas” or areas that have a high risk of Covid-19 infection like Benguet, Baguio City, Tabuk City, Tinglayan in Kalinga, and Metro Manila who attended the wedding.

The advisory said an attendee in the wedding later tested positive for Covid-19, placing the town in jeopardy of having a case.

“In order to avoid similar occurrence, said moratorium shall be in place except in cases of civil weddings which do not include community celebrations,” the advisory said.

Sadanga continues to maintain its coronavirus-free status until now together with the town of Barlig, also in Mountain Province. (PNA)