The number of COVID-19 cases at the Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) reached 97 Sunday as more employees in the agency have been tested for the disease.
On the other hand, three more PCOO employees recovered from the virus, bringing the number of recoveries to 18 from 15 last week.
The PCOO recorded the following cases as of Aug. 9, 10 a.m.:
- PCOO Proper: 23 active, seven recovered, one death.
- APO Production Unit: nine active, one recovered, one death.
- Bureau of Broadcast Service (BBS): One recovered.
- National Printing Office (NPO): 32 active.
- PTV-4: Five active, one recovered, one death.
- Philippine Information Agency (PIA): Five recovered.
- Radio Television Malacañang (RTVM): Five active, three recovered.
- News and Information Bureau (NIB): Two active.
The following PCOO-attached offices have no cases of COVID-19:
- Bureau of Communication Services (BCS).
- IBC-13.
The PCOO has likewise tested the following employees in its attached offices:
- PCOO: 232 / 419.
- APO: 70 / 295.
- BBS: 8 / 277.
- BCS: 75 employees total; waiting for RT-PCR test schedule.
- IBC-13: 132 employees in Manila; waiting for RT-PCR test schedule.
- NIB: 134 / 179 (Manila only).
- NPO: 439 / 450.
- PIA: 125 / 488.
- PTV-4: 124 / 557 (Manila only).
- RTVM: 78 / 158.
Communications Secretary Martin Andanar said last week that the PCOO continues to take proactive measures to address the situation and that they immediately conducted another batch of testing and contact tracing of the primary and secondary contacts of those newly infected staff.
He added that its COVID-19 Response Team, composed of COVID-19 Warriors from every office within PCOO, continues to coordinate all of the office’s efforts on contact tracing, testing, monitoring, and isolation and quarantine.
The former journo has assured the public that the PCOO will continue providing services despite the increase in the number of cases.
"Rest assured that the delivery of essential and timely information to the Filipino public will continue despite the unfortunate circumstance we are facing," he said.
"As work at the New Executive Building (NEB) remains suspended, PCOO continues to adopt a work-from-home arrangement in order to fulfill its obligations and mandate to the Filipino people," he added.