By Mario Casayuran and Hannah Torregoza There is a glaring failure among government agencies to communicate in contacting passengers seated near two Chinese passengers, one of whom died of suspected infection of the 2019 novel coronavirus acute respiratory disease (2019-nCoV ARD). Transporation secretary Arthur Tugade (ALI VICOY/ MANILA BULLETIN) This was pointed out by Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade in Tuesday's public hearing on the feared spread of the NCoV in the Philippines where only 17 percent of the passengers of Cebu Pacific who recently arrived from Hong Kong have been contacted so far by health authorities. Tugade was reacting to an observation of Department of Health (DoH) Secretary Francisco Duque that his department is having difficulty in getting the list of passengers for interview by epidemiologists. He said it is up to the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) and Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) to submit the list of their passengers because they have the power and ascendancy that the DOH does not have. “What is the protocol?  Mas maganda the one following up may latigo. It is a sad situation. There is failure to coordinate,’’ Tugade added. (It is better that the one following up the list has the whip.) Ed V. Monreal, general manager of the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA), told the committee that the airlines would not withhold the names of passengers based on protocols. Sen. Christopher Go, chairman of the Senate Committee on Health, assured the public that the government has been on top of the situation and is committed to assist Filipinos and the rest of the world in laying down measures to mitigate the impact of the 2019-nCoV ARD on the whole community. Opposition Senator Francis N. Pangilinan said he disagrees with Duque in blaming his underlings for doing their jobs without his knowledge. Like Senator Joel Villanueva, Pangilinan lamented that only 17 percent of the passengers have been contacted so far. He said there is no failure of communications but failure of leadership at the DOH. “It’s been how many days already? And you haven’t contacted 100 percent all these persons the patient came into contact with? It’s understandable if its hotels or restaurants, but airplanes?” Sen. Nancy Binay asked. Sen. Panfilo “Ping” Lacson stressed the importance of principle of unity of command in dealing with the nCoV situation, with the DOH taking charge. “What happens to the principle of unity of command? I thought this is a health issue, and the DOH should be the first line of defense and should be designated as the Office of Primary Responsibility,” Lacson pointed out in the hearing. Sen. Risa Hontiveros said the DOH should step up its efforts and be prepared for the worst case scenario. “Are we prepared? We don’t want our countrymen and women to panic. But we have to assure them and answer the most fundamental question: are we prepared for the worst?” Hontiveros pointed out. Senators said it is imperative for the DOH to mandate travelers from China who arrived in the Philippines in the past three weeks to report to local health authorities. “The DOH needs to step up. Hindi mo masisisi ang ilan nating kababayan na mag-alala kung hindi naman ka-level ng Japan ang healthcare system mo, (You can’t blame our citizens to be worried, because we don’t have a health care system that’s at par with Japan),” she said. “We need to assure the public that we are prepared,” Hontiveros stressed. Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Secretary Teodoro Locsin said the problem of contact tracing these passengers is the job of the CAB and the Bureau of Immigration. As a frequent traveller himself, Locsin said one cannot leave the plane without filling up immigration documents. He said he has been reprimanded at times for failing to submit a filled-up immigration documents. “For the BOI, there is no such thing as right to privacy ‘’- else we are open to invasion,’’ he added. WHO support The World Health Organization (WHO) stands ready to help the Philippine government’s efforts in dealing with deadly 2019 novel coronavirus (2019 NCOV). Appearing before the Senate Health Committee chaired by Senator Christopher Lawrence ‘’Bong’’ Go, Dr. Rabindra Abeyasinghe, WHO Officer-in-Charge (OIC) Country Representative, asked Filipinos to stay calm as current government measures are adequate to control this medical outbreak. Abeyasinghe commended the country’s Department of Health (DOH) headed by Secretary Francisco Duque III for its active measures in dealing with the viral threat as the 2019 NcoV was declared an international concern last January 31. He said frequent washing of hands is a must, including the use of alcohol, in warding off viral spread. The WHO does not give much emphasis to the use of face masks but high-risk persons in the medical profession should use these masks. The life span of a 2019 nCoV virus is from eight to 10 hours   . The WHO believes that the deadly coronavirus could still be controlled like the SARS and Merscov. It expressed optimism that the responses by the international community would slow down the spread and even contain the spread of the virus. Abeyasinghe said the death rate caused by NCoV is low at two percent compared to previous viral attacks. Eighty-eight percent of the fatalities are persons with ages over 60.