BY JEFFREY DAMICOG
Twenty-nine Filipino seafarers have tested positive for the coronavirus (COVID-19) disease (COVID-19) after arriving in China to board their ships, the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) said on Wednesday.
POEA Administrator Bernard Olalia said that Chinese Embassy in mainland China informed him that there are 29 Filipino seafarers who tested positive for COVID-19 after arriving in China.
“Nakipag-ugnayan na sa amin ang Chinese Embassy and meron po silang binigay sa akin na listahan na 29 na seafarers na nag-test positive after taking yung negative tests ng COVID,” said Olalia during an interview at the Kapihan sa Manila.
Olalia said the 29 seafarers have tested negative of the disease before being allowed deployment to China.
During his meeting with Embassy officials, the administrator said the officials expressed concerns over the integrity of COVID-19 tests being conducted in the Philippines.
“Sabi ko po walang isyu doon sa integrity dahil sigurado po dahil hindi naman po pumapayag ‘yan na ma-forged o ma-doctor or magbigay ng fabricated result ‘yung ating mga DOH-accredited facility na nag-i-issue po ng negative COVID test,” the administrator assured.
Meanwhile, Olalia said the POEA will continue to engage with Chinese counterparts to ensure that the incident will never happen again.
Olalia said he has also contacted the manning agency which deployed the 29 seafarers and required it to submit a report.
“Nagpaliwanag naman po sila na marami pong factors na involved doon sa pagiging COVID positive ng ating seafarers,” he said.
