Mariel De Leon took to Twitter to defend her father, actor Christopher De Leon, from claims that he received VIP treatment to get tested for having the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19).
She retweeted a post that listed her father among the “politicians/personalities na hindi sumunod sa (who did not follow) COVID-19 testing protocols” which, according to the triage system of the Department of Health, states that individuals prioritized for testing are as follows: those who exhibit symptoms, have traveled to countries with COVID-19, or those in contact with a confirmed COVID-19 case.
Christopher, aged 63, revealed to the public last week that he had tested positive and that his entire family is placing themselves under quarantine.
Mariel then spoke out about her dad’s decision.
My dad works a lot (events, tapings, shooting) so he’s always exposed to many people. Before he got tested, he was sick and decided to quarantine himself in the house. After it persisted, he decided to go to the doctors to take the test. https://t.co/ARs0e0BHfJ
— MARIEL DE LEON (@honestlymariel) March 22, 2020
“My dad works a lot (events, tapings, shooting) so he’s always exposed to many people. Before he got tested, he was sick and decided to quarantine himself in the house. After it persisted, he decided to go to the doctors to take the test,” she began.
“Like everyone else there, he had to wait hours in line because they ran out of tests that morning/afternoon so they had to wait longer. He was more worried about my mom because she is a kidney transplant patient (among other health issues). She’s not healthy and she is definitely immunocompromised. Also, they live with other elders including my lola,” she clarified.
She added, “So idk maybe don’t assume things without confirming first?”
She then lamented how the Philippine government is currently handling the health crisis in the country, especially when many asymptomatic officials and their families have been getting tested while persons under investigation and monitoring are being made to wait. “They need to do better. We all need to do better,” she said.
(ALSO READ: DOH Distributes 100,000 COVID-19 Test Kits to Testing Centers Nationwide)
As of writing, there are 501 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the Philippines, including 33 mortalities and 19 recoveries.
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