MANILA, Philippines — There is a “big possibility” that there are more underground clinics treating Chinese patients infected with COVID-19 in Parañaque City due to a surge of Chinese residents in the city, police said on Tuesday.
“Malaki po siguro dahil maraming Chinese na nakatira dito. Siguro mas nagtitiwala yung mga Chinese na mga Chinese din tumitingin sa kanilang kalusugan,” Parañaque police chief Col. Robin Sarmiento said over Teleradyo when asked about the possibility of more illegal Chinese clinics operating in the city.
(I think there is a big possibility that there are more underground Chinese clinics in the area because there are many Chinese nationals who moved here. Maybe they feel more at ease if its their compatriot who is looking after their health.)
Sarmiento said there are over 24 licensed Philippine offshore gaming operators (Pogo), which mostly employ Chinese nationals, in Parañaque. Most of them also live in Parañaque.
However, the Parañaque police chief warned that these Chinese medical centers will post more health risk if these are found to be unlicensed and are not being inspected by the government authorities.
“Pero ang problema po baka di naman nasusunod ang health standard dahil hindi rehistrado, hindi naiinspeksiyon kaya yun nag nagiging problema,” Sarmiento said.
(The problem is that health standards might not be followed if these clinics are unregistered, or uninspected by health authorities. So that is the problem.)
Last Saturday, police officers raided an illegal clinic catering to Chinese patients at the second floor of the Diamond Bay Tower on Roxas Boulevard and seized some 237 boxes containing unlicensed Chinese medicines. The raid stemmed from a search warrant by the Parañaque Regional Trial Court Branch 258.
In April, police officers also uncovered a Chinese clinic in Barangay Baclaran in Parañaque with unregistered COVID-19 medicine even as authorities have yet to identify the cure for the respiratory disease.