180 police applicants in BARMM get virus

COTABATO CITY—At least 180 police applicants and four police officers in the Bangsamoro Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) have tested positive for COVID-19, a health official said. Dr. Elizabeth Samama, Maguindanao provincial health officer, said their infections were confirmed after they took a reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction test as part of the health requirements in their applications. “Many came from areas where spikes of COVID-19 cases were reported,” Samama said. Most of the patients, age 21 to 30, came from the BARMM provinces of Maguindanao, Lanao del Sur, Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi. Samama said they were in stable condition and had been isolated at Notre Dame of Parang High School in Parang, Maguindanao. —EDWIN O. FERNANDEZ