TOKYO – A Filipino based in the Japanese capital has succumbed to the novel coronavirus, Philippine Ambassador to Japan Jose Laurel V said Thursday.
“Iyong mga Pilipinong nandito, we only have one mortality and in the case of Tokyo, 56 – isa lang ang namatay,” he said in a Laging Handa briefing.
According to the envoy, two of the 82 confirmed cases in Osaka are currently undergoing treatment while the rest have recovered.
In Nagoya, Laurel said no casualty was reported.
“Beyond that, everybody is fine,” he said.
Laurel stated that the number of Filipinos infected with the pneumonia-causing virus is relatively low in Japan.
“Wala naman hong malaking datos ang nagkasakit na Pilipino sa Japan. Ang sa katotohanan, karamihan ay mga—itong seamen na nasa Diamond Princess Cruise na bapor at iyong isa ay sa Costa Atlantica. This has only roughly about 41 and in the case of the Diamond, 80,” he said.
The envoy noted that Japan is “very, very meticulous” in its inoculation drive, and assured that all Filipinos will be covered by the Japanese government’s vaccination program.
“They really study the system, their system is very basic – bigyan lahat muna ang mga frontliners, mga medical people, mga caregivers lahat. Susunod ang mga matatanda, pagkatapos anyone below 70 susunod; ang pinakahuli ay ang mga talubata [sic], the younger ones – talagang masinsin sila,” he said.
“Sa application ng vaccination, mayroon ho akong kuwan pero libre. Lahat ng kababayan natin dito, hindi binabayaran at sila ay kasama rin,” he added.
Moreover, Laurel reminded Filipinos in Japan to observe health protocols. “Ituloy lang ang pagsunod sa lahat ng ating mga inutos sa kanila kagaya nang gumamit ng maskara, wash your hands all the time and keep the two meters distance.”
Japan’s current state of emergency – its third since the start of the pandemic – covers Tokyo and the prefectures of Osaka, Hokkaido, Aichi, Kyoto, Hyogo, Okayama, Hiroshima, Fukuoka and Okinawa. - Florenda Corpuz
(File photo taken in June 2018 in Tokyo, Japan/Din Eugenio)
