President Rodrigo Duterte has guaranteed that the Philippines is prepared to participate in any clinical trial on the cure for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
According to Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) Spokesperson and Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles, in the special ASEAN summit on COVID-19, the ASEAN leaders have brought up discussed Avigan, a medication against Influenza, as one of the potential vaccines against the virus.
Cab Sec. Nograles has stated that President Duterte and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe had a discussion regarding Avigan, and reiterated that the Philippines is ready to participate in clinical trials against COVID-19. Prime Minister Abe has also stated that there are 50 countries interested in studying the drug.
The IATF spokesperson has insisted that ASEAN leaders have agreed to cooperate with each other in fighting COVID-19. – Report from Mela Lesmoras
