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COVID-19: PHILIPPINES FACTS AND RUMOURS

One of the plagues within this plague of the current pandemic is the spread of misinformation by way of social media. Much of that is done by repeating posts without fact-checking. Some is done maliciously. Once more I reproduce a Facebook post which is factual. It is relevant to Philippines facts and rumours and hopefully will assist foreigners who are at present in this country whether as residents or tourists.

The original source of the information below is the British Embassy in Manila. It came to me via Mr Robert Harland, a longtime resident of Manila and Bacolod. He also acts as a volunteer ‘warden’ for Negros Island. That’s sort of unpaid conduit between the Embassy and UK nationals. Much of the following also applies to other foreign nationals present in the Philippines during this pandemic.


From HM Consul:
With apologies for brevity, I wanted to address some of the rumours that are circulating;
1. The Ph. Department of Foreign Affairs responded to recent social media comments by confirming that visas of foreign nationals already in the Ph. will not (NOT) be cancelled.
The full text of their notice can be seen here.
Their press release can be seen here.
3. As of 14:00 today the following airlines were still offering flights out of the Philippines:
From Cebu : Philippine Airlines (PAL), Eva, Scoot, Silk, Emirates, Korean Air and Asiana
From Clark: Jin, Jetstar, Qatar and Emirates
From Manila: PAL, Emirates, Cathay and Qatar. Etihad is scheduled to resume flights on Saturday 21 March.
Please note that this list could change at very short notice, and all travellers are encouraged to speak directly to their airline to confirm their journeys. [My emphasis]

The latest news in Bacolod City is there is one confirmed case of Covid-19 infection. He is currently being treated in hospital. He is a 56-year old male Filipino who had returned to the Philippines from London in February 2020.

As of March 20, 2020, the Philippines Department of Health say there are 230 confirmed cases of NOVEL CORONAVIRUS DISEASE (COVID-19) countrywide.
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Published inBacolod LifeCOVID-19 PANDEMICRetiring To The Philippines

4 Comments

  1. John Steiner John Steiner

    And I thought the United States had a monopoly on misinformation. >grin< Truly, it's sad how much B.S. is passed along on social media by both well-meaning and not-so-well-meaning people.

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