Stressing the importance of molecular laboratories in the country’s fight against COVID-19, the Philippine Red Cross (PRC) today opened its 20th laboratory in the country and the first in Mindanao at the Pettitt Barracks, Zamboanga City.

“It is our responsibility to get ourselves tested for COVID-19, you can literally kill others if you are a carrier of the virus,” said PRC Chairman and CEO Sen. Richard Gordon. “Getting yourself tested and taking care of yourself is tantamount to taking care of your loved ones and others in your community,” he added.

With the capacity to conduct 2,000 tests per day, Gordon said that the newly opened PRC molecular laboratory in Zamboanga City is “strategically located” because it can also receive samples for testing from nearby provinces, including BaSulTa (Basilan, Sulu, and Tawi-Tawi), the Zamboanga Peninsula, and Dapitan, Dipolog, and Pagadian cities.

Supported by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the Zamboanga City molecular laboratory contains state-of-the-art equipment for testing, including one RNA extractor, two PCR machines, two biosafety cabinets, and three biomedical freezers.

PRC has been leading many humanitarian activities in Zamboanga City, including those for the Zamboanga siege last September 2013 in which it was able to give assistance to more than 100,000 individuals affected by the conflict. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the PRC Zamboanga City chapter is giving support to Filipino returnees from Sabah, Malaysia since June 30 through the distribution of hot meals, hygiene essentials, and giving psychosocial support.

“Today, on my mother’s 101st birthday, we inaugurated the 20th Molecular Laboratory of the Philippine Red Cross located at Pettitt Barracks, Zamboanga City,” Gordon said.

Equipped with two PCR machines and one RNA extractor and has a capacity of 2,000 tests per day, Gordon said this will not only test people in Zamboanga City, but the whole Zamboanga Peninsula and nearby provinces, including BASULTA, Dapitan, Dipolog, Isabela and Pagadian.

Gordon thanked staff and volunteers involved in the initiative.

“We cannot beat this invisible enemy unless we unmask it and we can only do that by testing our people,” he said. “Through this, we will now have our own defense against COVID-19.”