Don't play the victim, a Makati City official warns Berjaya Hotel management.

MANILA, Philippines — “The management should not play the aggrieved victim.” When asked for comment on the Berjaya Hotel management's statement, which indicated disagreement to the local government's closure order on the facility following the "Poblacion girl" scandal, a Makati City government official stated on Thursday. In a press release, Makati City Law Department Head Atty. Don Camia responded to Berjaya Hotel's reasoning on what to do about the 150 quarantined guests in the hotel if it follows the local government's closure order. "Berjaya was previously recommended to communicate with the Bureau of Quarantine for the relocation of its remaining guests to other facilities prior to its closure," Camiña said. If our aid was required, the city volunteered to help." "Berjaya should not avoid the subject." It has been proven and accepted to be negligent. "Laws have been breached, and the community's welfare and safety have been jeopardized," Camiña added. The Berjaya Hotel management previously claimed that Makati City's closure order is "without legal foundation," citing the Department of Tourism's decision to stop the hotel's operations after an accused visitor failed her quarantine. It further said that they should be given "due process and the opportunity to defend themselves before any penalty is imposed." The other week, Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat stated that a returning Filipina from the United States skipped her quarantine and went to a party in Poblacion, Makati City, earning the nickname "Poblacion girl." The girl was meant to spend her quarantine days in the Berjaya Hotel. The girl's COVID-19 test eventually came back positive, and she appeared to have inadvertently infected others at the party, according to the DOT chief.