San Miguel Corporation (SMC) has begun turning over its donation of Covid-19 testing booths starting with the cities of Mandaluyong, Pasig, and Manila, making good on an earlier promise to help boost the testing capacities of all 17 Metro Manila local government units.
A total of 24 testing booths were turned over to Mandaluyong Mayor Carmelita Abalos, Pasig Mayor Vico Sotto, and Manila Mayor Isko Moreno. The delivery of testing booths for other LGUs which include Quezon City, Caloocan, Malabon, Las Pinas, Paranaque, Muntinlupa, Makati, Navotas, San Juan, Taguig, Marikina, Valenzuela, Pasay, and Pateros—will continue this coming week.
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Apart from the testing booths, SMC is also donating P3 million worth of PCR tests to each of the 17 LGUs, which is equivalent to 34,000 tests. The company is also set to turn over an additional three sets of RT-PCR testing machines and automated RNA machines to key government hospitals on top of the earlier donation of five sets to the Department of Health (DoH).
“We are fully committed to helping all our Metro Manila LGUs increase their Covid-19 testing capabilities, in support of the national government’s expanded testing goals,” said SMC president Ramon S. Ang. “With these donations, we hope to help boost testing particularly in our less-fortunate communities where many underprivileged families are extra vulnerable, due to their living conditions,” he added.
Mr. Ang stressed the importance of carrying out expanded testing and making it accessible to more people. To achieve this, he said that testing should be made free for poor families. “We need to be able to find a way to make testing accessible to all. Everyone should have equal access, not just those who have the means,” he said.