Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra. (File photo)
MANILA – Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra on Friday reiterated the government's call for cooperation from Filipinos as the country continues to deal with the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) outbreak.
"As a nation, we should put up a united front against a common enemy," Guevarra told reporters.
His remarks came amid word wars and partisan politicking amid the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) implemented by the government to stop the spread of the virus.
"At this time in our history the government urgently needs all the help it can get: from the private sector, from the LGUs, from foreign governments, from the political opposition, from the church, from the citizenry," Guevarra said.
The DOJ earlier said enough prosecutors will be available to process possible cases arising from the implementation of the ECQ.
Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles earlier said faster identification and isolation of infected persons are now possible, considering that the country has more accredited Covid-19 testing centers.
In Luzon, the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine in Muntinlupa City, San Lazaro Hospital in Manila, University of the Philippines - National Institutes of Health in Manila City, Lung Center of the Philippines in Quezon City, and Baguio General Hospital and Medical Center can now conduct tests for Covid-19, he said.
Nograles said people from the Visayas who are potential Covid-19 carriers could go to the Western Visayas Medical Center in Iloilo City and Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center in Cebu City to have themselves tested for the viral disease.
He added that the Southern Philippines Medical Center in Davao City is the sole health facility in Mindanao to be accredited as a testing center for Covid-19.
These additional facilities can help in the faster identification and isolation of individuals with Covid-19), Nograles said.
Presidential Peace Adviser Carlito Galvez Jr., who concurrently serves as the chief implementer of the government’s national policy against Covid-19, announced on Thursday a plan to start mass testing of persons under monitoring and patients under investigation on April 14. (PNA)
