Palace assures public on Ebola

Malacañang on Monday assured the public the Ebola virus strain found in a Philippine monkey research and breeding facility was not the lethal variety that killed thousands in West Africa.

According to Presidential Communication Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr., the Department of Health (DOH) confirmed that the Ebola found in the research facility was of the Reston variety, which was different from the strain that killed thousands in Africa.

“Ebola Reston had previously been seen in our country, and the DOH has documented that it does not cause sickness among humans,” said Coloma.

Several monkeys in a local research facility were recently found to have been infected with the Ebola Reston virus. The DOH tested the facility’s 25 workers and all of them tested negative for the virus.

The Philippine interagency Committee on Zoonosis—made up of the DOH, Department of Agriculture and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources—formed by President Aquino in 2011 has been at the forefront of controlling and preventing the spread of zoonotic diseases or illnesses that may be transferred from animals to humans and vice versa, Coloma said.—Gil Cabacungan