Original article courtesy of Yahoo News

By: Katrina Hallare

YOU can count on the Filipino Chinese community in the Philippines to rise up to the occasion when help is needed. The Filipino Chinese community announced donation of P100 million worth of medical supplies for the Department of Health (DOH) to support the coronavirus disease or Covid-19 prevention campaign of the Philippines.

The 11 major Filipino Chinese business, civic and cultural organizations – led by Federation of Filipino Chinese Chambers of Commerce & Industry, Inc. (FFCCCII) – raised this fund as symbol of solidarity with the rest of Philippine society and as a gesture of strong support.

FFCCCII is only a lead organization in this broad, multi-sectoral Filipino Chinese community’s philanthropy… The term “Filipino Chinese” or “Philippine Chinese” is used in this statement, because it refers to geographic or cultural milieu of the Philippines’ ethnic Chinese and not to their legal citizenship. The diverse 11 Filipino Chinese business, civic and cultural organizations represent different ethnic Chinese who are mostly Filipino citizens, but they also also include sizeable numbers of those who hold passports of Hong Kong, China, Taiwan, etc., thus the broad, inclusive term “Filipino Chinese” used.

This P100 million donation was announced in the morning of last week at the Pandesal Forum of Kamuning Bakery Café in Quezon City, just right after the late night speech of President Rodrigo Duterte on March 11 announcing that Metro Manila shall be placed under “community quarantine”.

Message read by FFCCCII president Dr. Henry Lim Bon Liong representing 11 Filipino Chinese organizations.

Friends, ladies and gentlemen:

Good morning.

On March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared coronavirus disease (Covid-19) a pandemic. Three days before that, President Rodrigo Roa Duterte has declared a “State of Public Health Emergency throughout the Philippines” after the confirmed local transmission of Covid-19.

Last night, President Duterte has announced COVID-19 code red alert sub-level 2, the imnposition of a “community quarantine” in Metro Manila and he has given many specific pro-active instructions on how we in the Philippines can contain this virus in order to maintain public health of our people and the continued dynamism of our economy.

This situation calls for greater cooperation between governmental and nongovernmental agencies to respond to this threat.

We have two announcements today…

FIRST – The Filipino Chinese community – spearheaded by the Federation of Filipino-Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry, Inc. (FFCCCII) and FFCCCII Foundation Inc. together with: Federation of Filipino Chinese Associations of the Philippines, World News Daily, Filipino Chinese Amity Club, Overseas Chinese Alumni Association of the Philippines, Filipino Chinese Shin Lian Association, Philippine Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Inc. (PCCCII), Overseas Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Philippines, Philippine Soong Ching Ling Foundation, Philippine Jin Jiang Shen Fu Zhen Association, and World Fujian Youth Association & Business Club – fully supports the conscientious and earnest efforts of the government to prevent further transmission of COVID-19 in the Philippines.

We are deeply concerned by the continuing spread of this disease that has claimed thousands of lives around the world, and has made a big impact on the global economy.

To support the Philippine government’s prevention and control efforts against Covid-19, we are today donating P100 Million Pesos worth of medical supplies to help the Department of Health with testing kits and other paraphernalia. Through this, we hope to help our hardworking and noble health authorities and health personnel ensure that our people in the Philippines will get access to fast screening and good health care.

SECOND – Our Filipino Chinese community, especially the FFCCCII, is coordinating with the Chinese Embassy through His Excellency Ambassador Huang Xilian for the Philippines’ traditional ally and ancient trade partner China to send us additional emergency medical supplies as well as their topnotch medical doctors and personnel who are experts in handling Covid-19 to be able to come over here to augment our own Filipino medical doctors and personnel.