Bello apologizes to Dubai gov't for confusion over Filipina death there due to 'coronavirus'
By Leslie Ann Aquino
Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III on Friday apologized to the Government of Dubai for the confusion caused by his statement regarding the death of a Filipino household worker in Dubai.
Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) Secretary Silvestre Bello III (Keith Bacongco / FILE PHOTO / MANILA BULLETIN)
In a statement, the labor department clarified that the death of overseas Filipino worker Amalia Collado Daproza at Al Zahra Hospital in the UAE was not a case of the novel coronavirus (nCoV).
On Thursday, Bello said the OFW had died of “coronavirus” based on earlier information provided his office.
READ MORE: DOLE confirms OFW dead in Dubai from unspecified coronavirus
The secretary, however, did not say it was the novel coronavirus.
"Secretary Bello nonetheless wishes to apologize to the Government of Dubai for the confusion and whatever anxiety that the announcement may have caused," the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) said.
"Based on a belated report received by the office of Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III from the Philippine Labor Office in Dubai, results of confirmatory tests conducted by the Pathology and Genetics Department of the Dubai Health Authority on Daproza’s specimen yielded negative of the novel corona virus," they said.
Earlier, the Government of Dubai Media Office denied the statement about a Filipina dying in Dubai due to nCoV, saying the cause of death was pneumonia and the woman had tested negative for novel coronavirus.
READ MORE: UAE official debunks reports of nCoV death of Filipino domestic helper in Dubai
Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) Secretary Silvestre Bello III (Keith Bacongco / FILE PHOTO / MANILA BULLETIN)
In a statement, the labor department clarified that the death of overseas Filipino worker Amalia Collado Daproza at Al Zahra Hospital in the UAE was not a case of the novel coronavirus (nCoV).
On Thursday, Bello said the OFW had died of “coronavirus” based on earlier information provided his office.
READ MORE: DOLE confirms OFW dead in Dubai from unspecified coronavirus
The secretary, however, did not say it was the novel coronavirus.
"Secretary Bello nonetheless wishes to apologize to the Government of Dubai for the confusion and whatever anxiety that the announcement may have caused," the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) said.
"Based on a belated report received by the office of Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III from the Philippine Labor Office in Dubai, results of confirmatory tests conducted by the Pathology and Genetics Department of the Dubai Health Authority on Daproza’s specimen yielded negative of the novel corona virus," they said.
Earlier, the Government of Dubai Media Office denied the statement about a Filipina dying in Dubai due to nCoV, saying the cause of death was pneumonia and the woman had tested negative for novel coronavirus.
READ MORE: UAE official debunks reports of nCoV death of Filipino domestic helper in Dubai