MANILA, Philippines — There is no documented coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) case in the House of Representatives yet, Secretary-General Jose Luis Montales has assured on Tuesday.
Montales made the assurance after the alleged lockdown of one of the rooms in the Mitra Building inside the House of Representatives compound in Quezon City.
“It’s NOT true that a room in Mitra is on a lockdown. Some HRep employees went to a wake. In another room was a person whose brother allegedly tested positive for Covid-19 and now confined in a hospital,” Montales said in a text message.
“While we are verifying this report, and as a precautionary measure even though there was no direct contact with the said person, the employees were directed not to report for work in the meantime,” he added.
In a separate statement, Montales said that of the three printing personnel who were rumored to be infected with the disease, “one was confined for a non-COVID disease and was discharged; one was confined yesterday for suspected dengue and is still in the hospital, and one has been in and out of the hospital since last year for various ailments and is presently in the ICU for community-acquired pneumonia.”
“Everyone is advised to refrain from sharing unverified reports and false news. Confirm any information from the Office of the Secretary-General,” Montales said.
The Department of Health (DOH) on Tuesday afternoon said that the total number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the country has increased to 35.