Marcelino Teodoro, the usually low-key mayor of Marikina City, grew visibly exasperated last week as the Department of Health (DOH) continued to delay the opening of the city’s testing center for the new coronavirus disease (COVID-19).
The laboratory was set to open on Monday when the DOH stopped it, saying the lab must to be set up in a separate stand-alone building.
Teodoro chided the DOH for failing to treat Marikina “like a partner” in the fight against the virus, giving voice to local officials piqued by bureaucratic hurdles at a time of unprecedented crisis.
“It’s really frustrating because we’re the ones on the ground,” he said. “At some point, you start feeling angry because you are seeing your countrymen suffering.”
But the DOH denied blocking the lab and said it would help the city look for a more suitable testing venue.