VP calls for ban on all travelers from China
by Joseph Almer PedrajasVice President Leni Robredo on Friday called for the immediate ban on all travelers coming from China, saying the first reported case of 2019 novel coronavirus (nCoV) to hit the country “needs an urgent action from the government.”
“Marami ng mga mungkahi para mas paigtingin pa ng pamahalaan ang tugon – ang pagpataw ng pangkalahatang prohibisyon sa lahat ng mga byahe galing sa bansa ng Tsina at ang pagtiyak na mabigyan ng karampatang suporta ang mga kababayan nating mga nasa apektadong lugar, kasama ang paglikas kung kakailanganin,” she said.
Robredo stressed the importance of an urgent action from the government considering that the “World Health Organization (WHO) already declared a global emergency.”
“Wala na tayong panahon para sa mahabang usapan. Buhay ng tao ang nakasalalay kaya agarang aksyon, tamang impormasyon, at mabilisang desisyon ang kailangan,” the vice president said.
“Sa panahon ng krisis, dapat makaasa ang taumbayan sa kanyang pamahalaan na walang aaksayahing oras para unahin ang kanilang kapakanan,” she added.
On Thursday, the Department of Health confirmed the first reported 2019-nCoV case in the country. A 38-year-old Chinese woman from Wuhan, China, the epicenter of the outbreak, has tested positive for the said virus.
Malacañang has issued a travel ban on Chinese travelers on Friday morning after a case has already been reported. But the ban only applies to those coming from Hubei province of China, where the virus originated from, and from other places in China where there is a spread of the disease.
“Sa ngayon sa Hubei. Yun pa lang ang alam natin, eh. Wala pang sinasabi,” presidential spokesman Salvador Panelo told reporters.
Panelo said the coverage of the travel ban will be updated once the Chinese government or the World Health Organization (WHO) identifies the other areas where there are confirmed cases of the virus.