Statement on the Five University Personnel Currently Under Isolation

This statement is issued to correct the false information circulating in social media relating to Silliman University (SU) employees’ exposure to the lawyer identified by the Negros Oriental IATF as Covid-19 Patient No. 191.

On October 6, 2020, five SU Marina clinic personnel met with Covid-19 Patient No. 191 in his law office at Taclobo, Dumaguete City, to discuss employment-related matters.

The University first came to know of the said gathering on October 8, 2020, after Covid-19 Patient No. 191 referred to the SU General Counsel by way of a text message a matter that was raised in the meeting.

No officer of the University, including the Vice-President for Development, University General Counsel, and the Dean of the College of Law, personally met with Covid-19 Patient No. 191 in or out of campus since the time he reportedly arrived from Manila on October 3, 2020. Further, at no time did Covid-19 Patient No. 191 enter the Silliman campus to sign an agreement or any other event.

When news came to the University early this week that Covid-19 Patient No. 191 had tested positive for the virus, the five SU Marina clinic personnel were immediately instructed to self-isolate at a University facility accredited by the Dumaguete City IATF. They were subjected to PCR testing by the City Health Office on October 15, 2020, and are awaiting the results.

University personnel who had contact with the five SU Marina clinic personnel were likewise advised to self-isolate.

Personnel from the Office of the University General Counsel and the College of Law, including the University General Counsel and Dean of the College of Law, who had contact with one of the SU Marina clinic personnel on October 7, 8, and 9, 2020, also underwent testing (RDT) by the City Health Office on October 15, 2020. The test results have come out non-reactive. They will, however, continue self-isolating under DOH protocol. To this day, the 5 SU Marina personnel and all of those exposed to them have not developed any symptoms.

Silliman University enjoins the public to be compliant and remain vigilant to help arrest the spread of Covid-19 virus.