(Fighting new crown pneumonia) Philippines apology for misleading remarks thanks to Chinese government for generous donation

China News Service, Manila, March 29 (Reporter Guan Xiangdong) The Philippine Ministry of Health issued a statement on the afternoon of March 29, apologizing for the misunderstanding caused by officials' statements about the Chinese aid kit to the Philippines at a routine press conference on the 28th.

On the same day, Philippine Health Minister Duke wrote a letter to the Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines, Huang Xilian, apologizing for the misleading remarks, emphasizing that the Chinese government ’s aid kit to the Philippines is of very good quality and meets the standards of the Philippine Medical Research Institute (RITM) and WHO. The generous donation to the Chinese government once again expressed appreciation and thanks.

The Philippine Ministry of Health stated that the Chinese government donated 2,000 BGI test kits and 100,000 Shengxiang technology test kits from the Philippines to the RITM. After parallel testing, the above kits are consistent with the test results provided by the World Health Organization. In addition, the test kit produced by Shengxiang Technology contains all the required auxiliary agents, and the Philippine government can use them directly without purchasing additional auxiliary agents separately.

The statement clarified that the testing kit mentioned by the Philippine Ministry of Health at a routine press conference on the 28th was another branded kit intended to be donated by a private foundation. After a preliminary review of the relevant documents, RITM deems it necessary to conduct subsequent verifications. In order to reduce this extra step, the parties agreed to use kits produced by BGI and Shengxiang Technology in subsequent donations. The Philippine Ministry of Health wishes to apologize for the misunderstanding caused by the previous comments.

According to a statement issued by the Chinese Embassy in the Philippines on the morning of the 29th, the Philippine media reported the statement of the Philippine Ministry of Health officials on March 28 regarding the accuracy of the new crown pneumonia test for Chinese aid to the Philippines. The Philippine Ministry of Health conducted a careful verification and had an in-depth understanding of the situation. The above kit has been officially put into use, which has played an important role in the Philippine government's rapid response to the epidemic. (Finish)