Solon hails Capas hosting of Wuhan repatriates a 'noble thing'
Published Feb 9, 2020 12:00 am
By Ellson Quismorio
Magdalo Party-List Rep. Manuel Cabochan III has described the hosting by the town of Capas in Tarlac of the quarantine of Filipino repatriates from Wuhan, China, as a "noble" thing.
Rep. Manuel Cabochan III (Party-list, MAGDALO)
(HOR / MANILA BULLETIN FILE PHOTO) "Accommodating the quarantine of our kababayans (countrymen) from Wuhan is indeed a noble thing. But then again, we understand the worry of the people there, there is this 'good intentions, bad results' which I pray will not happen," said the neophyte legislator. "I wish the province is prepared and capable to 'handle, contain, and treat' otherwise we will be dealing with a bigger problem," stressed the former Navy lieutenant. Wuhan in Hubei province, China is the epicenter of the 2019 novel coronavirus (2019 nCoV) outbreak that has killed over 700 people and infected over 34,000 others worldwide. Incidentally, the Philippines accounted for the first death outside of China from the virus, which causes an acute respiratory disease. There are only three confirmed nCoV cases in the country, all three being Chinese nationals from Wuhan. On Sunday morning, the first batch of Filipinos from the Chinese city arrived at the Haribon hangar of the Philippine Air Force in Clark, Pampanga. The 30 individuals, plus two Philippine consul personnel, will be quarantined for at least two weeks at New Clark City in Capas. National quarantine facility needed New Clark City was thrust into the spotlight last year as the location for several events in the local hosting of the 30th Southeast Asian Games. Now, all eyes will be on it again, for entirely different reason. Quezon City second district Rep. Precious Hipolito-Castelo underscored that New Clark City was designed for sporting events and not for containing a virus outbreak. “It doesn’t have the needed safety features of a quarantine area,” the lady solon said. “Besides, the local government in Tarlac is opposed to having a quarantine facility in its area of jurisdiction,” she added. What the government should do is to establish a dedicated quarantine facility to help the country deal with situations such as the nCoV crisis. “Whereas if we have a national quarantine facility, the government won’t be wasting precious time searching for the right area to contain the spread of the disease,” Hipolito-Castelo said. “Building our first quarantine facility now would save us a lot of time and effort to respond to similar crisis in the future,” she pointed out. Since the proposed facility will be carrying out special roles and functions, it should be run by well-trained personnel and equipped with the necessary features to promote the safety of both the quarantined persons and the public, she said.
Rep. Manuel Cabochan III (Party-list, MAGDALO)(HOR / MANILA BULLETIN FILE PHOTO) "Accommodating the quarantine of our kababayans (countrymen) from Wuhan is indeed a noble thing. But then again, we understand the worry of the people there, there is this 'good intentions, bad results' which I pray will not happen," said the neophyte legislator. "I wish the province is prepared and capable to 'handle, contain, and treat' otherwise we will be dealing with a bigger problem," stressed the former Navy lieutenant. Wuhan in Hubei province, China is the epicenter of the 2019 novel coronavirus (2019 nCoV) outbreak that has killed over 700 people and infected over 34,000 others worldwide. Incidentally, the Philippines accounted for the first death outside of China from the virus, which causes an acute respiratory disease. There are only three confirmed nCoV cases in the country, all three being Chinese nationals from Wuhan. On Sunday morning, the first batch of Filipinos from the Chinese city arrived at the Haribon hangar of the Philippine Air Force in Clark, Pampanga. The 30 individuals, plus two Philippine consul personnel, will be quarantined for at least two weeks at New Clark City in Capas. National quarantine facility needed New Clark City was thrust into the spotlight last year as the location for several events in the local hosting of the 30th Southeast Asian Games. Now, all eyes will be on it again, for entirely different reason. Quezon City second district Rep. Precious Hipolito-Castelo underscored that New Clark City was designed for sporting events and not for containing a virus outbreak. “It doesn’t have the needed safety features of a quarantine area,” the lady solon said. “Besides, the local government in Tarlac is opposed to having a quarantine facility in its area of jurisdiction,” she added. What the government should do is to establish a dedicated quarantine facility to help the country deal with situations such as the nCoV crisis. “Whereas if we have a national quarantine facility, the government won’t be wasting precious time searching for the right area to contain the spread of the disease,” Hipolito-Castelo said. “Building our first quarantine facility now would save us a lot of time and effort to respond to similar crisis in the future,” she pointed out. Since the proposed facility will be carrying out special roles and functions, it should be run by well-trained personnel and equipped with the necessary features to promote the safety of both the quarantined persons and the public, she said.