Filipino diplomat in UN with COVID-19 doing well

MANILA, Philippines — One of the country’s diplomats assigned to the United Nations in New York has tested positive for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) confirmed yesterday.

In a post on Twitter yesterday, Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. said the female diplomat is “doing well.”

Locsin said acting Philippine UN Ambassador Kira Azucena informed him that the patient was taking doctor prescribed medicines.

“The infected is doing well; she’s young, spritely, smart and taking some doctor prescribed meds,” the DFA chief said.

Locsin said the Filipino diplomat had come from Florida, where she celebrated her birthday with friends.

The DFA, in a separate statement, said necessary health and safety protocols have been implemented.

In an interview with Reuters, Azucena said all Philippine Mission personnel were instructed to self-quarantine and to seek medical attention should they develop symptoms.

“We are assuming that all of us have been infected,” Azucena said in a message to Reuters.

There are 12 diplomats at the Filipino mission based on the online UN directory of staff.

Azucena said the sick diplomat represented the Philippines at the UN General Assembly’s legal affairs committee.

The DFA also reiterated its advice to Filipinos to defer non-essential travel to Israel.

“Should foreign nationals, including Filipinos, however, find their travels to Israel essential, they are required to obtain clearance from the Israeli Ministry of Interior, through the consular section of the embassy of Israel in Manila, prior to their departure,” the DFA said.

“The public is advised not to proceed to the embassy as it is not admitting visitors as a precautionary measure in view of the COVID-19 pandemic,” the DFA said.

In Makati City, Rockwell Land Corp. announced two positive cases of COVID-19 in its Joya North Tower, Rockwell Center.

Rockwell assured its tenants that it has “implemented measures meant to help prevent risks of inadvertent infection, including closure of some public areas.”

It maintained that it is “conscious of possible exposure every time we meet people and go to public spaces.”

In nearby San Juan City, a new confirmed case has been recorded, bringing the total in the city to nine.

Mayor Francis Zamora clarified that the ninth patient is a new case and not the patient who reportedly tried to flee authorities yesterday.

“All are currently admitted in hospitals and are in stable condition,” Zamora said in a statement yesterday.

Meanwhile, Batangas City reported two COVID-19 cases. The city’s first COVID-19 patient is being treated in an undisclosed hospital in the city.

Capt. Hazel Luma-Ang Suarez, Batangas police spokesperson, said they have no profile of the patient.

Meanwhile, Sen. Nancy Binay has urged the DOH and local health units to consider converting hostels as temporary quarantine centers for persons under investigation (PUIs) should cases become prevalent in provinces.

“It’s only a matter of time when LGUs will be overwhelmed with many COVID-related concerns. Perhaps, they can explore and study the possibility of engaging local hotels and establishments of similar nature and convert them as temporary quarantine centers,” she said. – With Neil Jayson Servallos, Ed Amoroso, Ghio Ong, Paolo Romero, Reuters