By Mario Casayuran Senator Imee R. Marcos expressed fears on Wednesday that the limited number of support centers of the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) will severely challenge the country’s capacity to conduct coronavirus disease (COVID-19) tests especially when a widespread contagion takes place. Senator Imee Marcos (Senator Imee Marcos Official Facebook Page / FILE PHOTO / MANILA BULLETIN) “Hanggang ngayon, hindi pa sinasabi ng DOH (Department of Health) kung ilan ba talaga ang kayang i-testing ng RITM bawat araw, Kahit limpak-limpak pa ang testing kit na bibilhin natin, kung kulang naman sa manpower, wala rin,” Marcos said. (Up to now, the Department of Health (DOH) has not stated how many patients the RITM could test every day. Even if there are many testing kits, if RITM lacks manpower, then it’s useless.) Marcos is calling for a bigger budget to modernize and expand the RITM in Muntinlupa, the country’s main center for Covid-19 testing. “Biruin nyo naman, sa recent hearing namin dito sa Senado, inamin mismo ng DOH na meron lang silang 2,000 testing kits. Tapos, ang population natin over 100 million. Eh paano na ‘yan sakaling lumobo pa ang maapektuhan?” Marcos said. (The DOH admitted during a Senate committee hearing that it only has 2,000 testing kits. What happens when there is a surge in the number of COVID-19 patients in the country which has a population of more than 100 million?). Marcos lamented that more than 30 years of government neglect towards the RITM has left it undermanned and ill-equipped to cope with the sudden appearance of new viruses and the spread of infection on a large scale. “Mag-aapat na dekada na mula nung na-inaugurate ang RITM sa panahon pa ng tatay ko, pero sa mahabang panahon, mukhang dinedma lang ang importansya ng RITM at halos walang nangyaring development,” Marcos said. (It has been four decades since RITM was inaugurated during the presidency of my late father, Ferdinand E. Marcos. But RITM was not given much importance and there has been no development since then.) At present, the RITM only has five sub-national centers that can perform COVID-19 testing: The Lung Center and San Lazaro Hospital in Metro Manila, Baguio City General Hospital, Vicente Sotto Medical Center in Cebu, and Southern Philippine Medical Center in Davao del Sur. Marcos recommended that the RITM’s regional presence be increased as soon as possible, starting with the high-population areas of Regions 3 to 5. “Wala tayong duda sa galing ng Pinoy sa siyensya at kahapon lamang ay balitang may mga dalubhasa ng UP na naka-develop ng sarili nilang testing kits,” Marcos said. (We don’t doubt the capability of our countrymen in the field of science as scientists at the University of the Philippines (UP) have developed testing kits.) “Kapag nalampasan na natin ang pagsubok na ito, dapat na talagang seryosohin ang pag-pondo sa modernong equipment at research ng RITM at karagdagang manpower nito sa iba’t ibang rehiyon,” Marcos added. (When we have overcome this current health crisis, it is time to take a serious look at the problem by giving funds for modern equipment and manpower for RITM’s regional offices.