By Glazyl Y. Masculino
BACOLOD City – Five operatives of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA)-Negros Occidental and two arrested drug suspects tested positive for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
According to PDEA-Negros Occidental head Nicolas Gomez, four male PDEA agents and a female colleague were infected with SARS-CoV-2, which causes the disease.
Gomez said two PDEA agents isolated themselves from 10 other personnel after they exhibited flu-like symptoms since Aug 13. Their swab test results came out four days later.
The two alleged drug suspects arrested in Barangay Banago here were also swabbed and tested positive of the virus, he added. They were immediately transferred to a quarantine facility in E.B. Magalona town.
Gomez said two more agents were infected on Aug 24, followed by another the following day.
He said the PDEA office here is temporarily on lockdown while they continue to undergo quarantine, though seven of them tested negative in the swab tests.
He said they do not know where the agents got the virus, but he assured that there is nothing to worry because the five agents were doing good.
He said they will continue to intensify their anti-illegal drug campaign through the operations led by the PDEA Special Enforcement Team.
