Duterte: US luring Filipino health care workers amid COVID-19 spread

The United States is causing problems for the Philippines as both countries deal with the spread of COVID-19, President Rodrigo Duterte said on Monday night.

In his weekly address to the country in the middle of the enhanced community quarantine in Luzon, Duterte indicated that the US was luring Filipino health care workers to deal with their own rising numbers of COVID-19 cases.

"Ngayon, ganito ang problema namin. America is part of the problem of the Filipinos now kasi sa karaming tinamaan sa kanila, marami nang patay," Duterte said.

"Nanawagan sila, mga nurse, ‘Sige, punta kayo sa Embassy, i-process nila ang Visa one  day [lang]. Kinabukasan, lipad ka na," he added.

Duterte said the US should have "relied on your own human resource."

Duterte said that the the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases wanted to keep Filipino health care workers to remain in the country.

"Tayo naman, ang IATF ganito, ‘wag kayong umalis lahat. Either kagustuhan mo, ayaw mo, dahil there’s no end in sight. Anong katapusan nito?" Duterte said.

"Wala pa. And our numbers are increasing. From 200 lang, ngayon, it has ballooned. Umabot na ng 4,932 cases," he added. -NB, GMA News