Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Salvador Panelo on Wednesday made several suggestions to avoid the possibility of turning community pantries into a “super spreader” venue for the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19).

During his commentary show “Counterpoint,” Panelo said makeshift pantry organizers may announce in advance that there would be a limit on the number of people who can line up to avail of free food items.

The “best” strategy, Panelo said, is to allow only up to 300 people to flock to food pantries.

“Ang the best talaga diyan, i-limit niyo ho yung bibigyan niyo. Sabihin niyo na sa tao. Kung magpopost man kayo, mag-announcement kayo, sabihin niyo na 300 lamang po o 200 lamang para hindi magulo (It’s best to limit the number of persons who will receive aid. When you make an announcement, tell them that you can only accommodate 200 or 300 people to make the event orderly),” Panelo said.

In case there are over 300 people who want to get free food, pantry organizers may raffle off the food items, Panelo said.

“Ang gawin niyo, iannounce niyo, magraraffle tayo. Kung sinong mabunot na numero, bawat isa, bibigyan mo ng numero, ‘yun lang ho ang makakapagbigay at umuwi na muna yung iba at bumalik (What you should do is announce that there will be a raffle. Whoever gets picked will be given food while others who are not lucky enough should go home and return the following day),” he said.

Panelo said organizers of community pantries may also coordinate with local government units (LGUs) for the possible “house-to-house” distribution of aid to avoid further spread of Covid-19.

He said pantry organizers may consider distributing food assistance to underprivileged communities.

“Bigay natin sa kanilang mga doorsteps yung mga ayuda. Oh eh di hindi na sila kailangang pumunta. Magandang proyekto iyan. Pagaralan nga natin iyan (Let’s distribute the aid to their doorstep so there would be no need for them to go to areas with community pantries. That’s a good project. Let’s study that),” he said.

Panelo said pantry organizers should learn a lesson from the establishment of a community pantry in Barangay Holy Spirit, Quezon City to mark the 36th birthday of actress Angel Locsin.

He was referring to the case of 67-year-old Rolando dela Cruz who lost consciousness while hoping to get free goods from Locsin’s community pantry and was declared dead on arrival in a hospital.

Panelo reminded organizers of food pantries to have proper coordination with LGUs to ensure the orderly distribution of aid.

“Walang mawawala sa inyo sapagkat sila ang aalalay sa inyo, sila ang magdadala ng mga bastonero doon para mapatupad ang mga health protocols (You’re not a loser here because they will assist you, they will send someone who can help you ensure the observance of health protocols),” he said.

On Tuesday, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque also reminded the community pantry organizers to make sure that they operate within curfew hours to avoid possible violation of health and quarantine protocols. (PNA)