Angelle De Leon
A netizen took to social media to express her anger at “VIPs” who took the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) test even when they had no symptoms.
In a Twitter thread, a certain Allen Adarna uploaded a news clip photo of National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) chief Maj. Gen. Debold Sinas taking a swab test for COVID-19.
Sinas, together with Eastern Police District director Brig. Gen. Johnson Almazan and some 50 other cops, underwent swab test at the Marikina Molecular Diagnostics Laboratory last May 6.
Sinas and Almazan are the first high-ranking police officials in Metro Manila who were tested for the disease.
In her tweet, Adarna vented her frustrations about Sinas, who recently violated quarantine rules for holding a birthday party, getting to be tested first rather than healthcare workers.
“It angers me to know that people (who violated protocols because of a stupid birthday celebration) gets to be tested first when more people (primarily health workers) can’t even go home because of the lack of test kits,” she said.
According to Adarna, her mom was a nurse assigned at a hospital’s isolation area for the coronavirus.
She noted that she haven’t seen her mom since March 20 because she’s been staying at the hospital.
Last May 5, Adarna said her mom told her that if she would test “negative” for COVID-19 she can go home.
“(Then) I asked her kanina (May 13) if may update and she told me na cancelled ang testing nila because wala raw gamit and, ‘di niya alam when pa siya makakauwi,” she wrote.
“You tell us na limited ang supply ng test kits that’s why mass testing can’t be done but you prioritize these people (Sinas and other policemen)?” she added.
https://twitter.com/fayeallennnn/status/1260583214017662976?s=19
Adarna said police were lucky that they can still go home to see their families unlike medical personnel.
“Plus, they (police) earn more. Pero health workers are locked up sa hospitals and are given PPEs (personal protective equipment) that are so difficult to wear plus sobrang init pa that they have to change because of the pawis. And now you test them (police) first?” she said.
“Tangina nakakawalang gana sobra! Kung alam ninyo lang ang feeling na sobrang saya ng family namin nung nalaman namin na she could possibly go home. She even asked my lola to cook her favorite food pag-uwi niya. Pero cancelled kasi walang gamit? TAE!” she added.
Netizens, who saw Adarna’s tweets, have also been annoyed about testing for coronavirus being unequal.
Here’s what some of them had to say: “Inuna na naman sila. Asan ba ang salitang priority sa vocabulary nila?”
inuna na naman sila. Asan ba ang salitang priority sa vocabulary nila?
— CLongerrsssss (@CLongerrssss) May 14, 2020
“Nakakagalit!!!!”
nakakagalit!!!! 🙁
— checkmater from tungle (@checkmaterr) May 14, 2020
“When they said mass testing, what they mean is ‘mass testing of patience’ ganon.”
When they said mass testing, what they mean is "mass testing of patience" ganon.
— ifanafterdark #TTPD (@ivnofdark) May 15, 2020
“Dapat pala nagpa-mañanita rin ako netong bday ko para may libreng covid test.”
https://twitter.com/rinelzxc/status/1260908547669291010?s=19
“Wala na. Binababoy na tayo ni dutae!!!”
https://twitter.com/buckethead888/status/1261107621961936897?s=19
These past weeks, we’ve seen a number of rich politicians and high-ranking police officials skipping protocols on COVID-19 testing to get tested despite being asymptomatic.
But the Department of Health earlier said that some government officials were tested due to an earlier protocol allowing those with exposure to confirmed cases or had traveled abroad to be tested.
