Pimentel to give side on quarantine breach ‘in due time’
SEN. Aquilino Pimentel 3rd on Friday said he would give, “in due time,” a detailed explanation on why he violated his self- quarantine for the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19), an act that triggered an angry response from the public.
“We are in an entirely new environment where everything is in a state of flux. I believe even the so- called protocols have changed over time. Everything will be clarified in due time,” Pimentel said.
Pimentel is being roundly criticized for bringing his pregnant wife, Kathryna, to the Makati Medical Center while he was in the middle of his selfimposed quarantine.
In a statement, Kathryna defended her husband, saying he never entered the hospital’s delivery room.
“He went with me [to] Makati Medical yesterday to be admitted, not knowing he was Covid-positive yet. Then RITM (Research
Institute for Tropical Medicine) called him around 9 p.m. (March 24) that he was positive. But he was just in the room. As soon as he found out he was positive, he left me already and told my OB (obstetrician) about his situation,” she said.
Kathryna claimed that her husband had been practicing social distancing, even while at home.
“We don’t even share a room for 10 days already… It was only yesterday that he went with me for admission because he was also excited to see me deliver ‘sana’ (hopefully), which was scheduled today at 7 a.m., but was canceled. They required me to get a swab test first before I am allowed to give birth. So, he never entered the delivery room… Even me, I didn’t enter the delivery room yet…,’’ she said.
Aside from public censure, Pimentel faces a possible legal backlash for what he did.
A private lawyer, Rico Quicho, said he was looking at possible criminal, civil and administrative charges against Pimentel for violating quarantine protocols and unduly exposing Makati Medical staff to possible Covid infection.
On Friday, the Philippine National Police (PNP) spokesman, BGen. Bernard Banac, said the PNP would file a case against Pimentel if Makati Medical or any other aggrieved party files a complaint.
Palace spokesman Salvador Panelo said concerned government agencies were directed to “ascertain the true facts behind the incident.”
He added that protocols set by the government for persons under investigation or monitoring must be strictly observed.
Last Thursday, the S&R Membership Shopping revealed that Pimentel was at its Bonifacio Global City branch on March 16 despite his being considered a person under investigation.
A colleague of Pimentel, Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri, the first senator to be Covid- positive, has decided to extend his home quarantine for another five days.
“I am now on my 16th day of isolation, but I have decided to extend it to 21 days just to be absolutely sure that I no longer have any symptoms,” Zubiri said Friday.
He said he must be found negative twice before he is considered recovered from the disease.
At the House of Representatives, another member has tested positive for Covid-19, Secretary-General Jose Luis Montales confirmed.
Montales said Bulacan Fourth District Rep. Henry Villarica’s test results came out Friday. Villarica was admitted to the hospital on March 12 for pneumonia, but his condition is now stable.
Villarica may have gotten the virus from Baliuag Mayor Ferdie Estrella, who tested positive, when he attended an event he hosted on March 8.
Montales said Villarica last reported for work on March 4. Members of his staff have not exhibited any symptoms.
Villarica is the second congressman to have acquired Covid-19, the first being ACT-CIS party-list Rep. Eric Go Yap.
Montales also said Manila Teachers party-list Rep. Virgilio Lacson tested negative in the final Covid screening at the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine.