Smart offers free access to NDRRMC, PIA websites amid COVID-19 scare

Smart Communications has expanded the list of government websites that can be accessed by its customers for free amid concerns over the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

Subscribers of Smart, Sun, and TNT can access the official websites of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council and Philippine Information Agency on their mobile phones.

According to Smart, the two websites provide updates on the number and locations of persons under investigation (PUI) and advisories on prevention.

“The key to dealing with this situation is having the right information at all times," said PLDT-Smart Public Affairs Head Ramon R. Isberto in a press release.

"By providing free access to these sites, we empower the public by helping them get information that will enable them to protect themselves, their families, and communities," he added.

The company earlier allowed free access to the Department of Health (DOH) and the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology's websites.

All Smart, Sun and TNT users can also call the 911 Emergency Hotline and 8888 Citizens’ Complaint Center hotlines for free. 

The World Health Organization declared the COVID-19 as a pandemic. Metro Manila has been placed under community quarantine as the number of confirmed cases in the Philippines rose to 52 and the death toll to five. —Angelica Y. Yang/MGP, GMA News