MANILA - Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto on Wednesday took a swipe at the free swab tests provided for those who physically attended the State of the Nation Address, saying the same benefit should be given Filipinos stranded by transport restrictions because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

"If we have tested for free those who’ve been on strict quarantine because they’re going to listen to a speech, then all the more we should test exposed individuals who are going home to their loved ones," Recto said in a statement.

"The same abundance of caution required of the few who attended the SONA should be applied to many," he said.

The government had administered coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) swab tests for about 50 individuals - mostly Cabinet members and lawmakers - ahead of President Rodrigo Duterte's 5th SONA on Monday at the Batasang Pambansa.

They received their results within hours of the test.

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"Let us also swab-test the other, more important VIPs – the Very Important Pasaheros... so [the] virus won't hitchhike to provinces," Recto said.

"These 'VIPs' are entitled to the same gold standard of testing, more so that they’ve been lodged in a place that will check all the boxes in the list of a possible outbreak spot," he said.

Testing stranded passengers for free will also "be a great sigh of relief" for local government units that will receive the travelers in various provinces, the senator said.

"A swab test will ensure that the coronavirus will not be hitchhiking to family reunions... and spare understaffed and underfunded LGUs and local hospitals from handling a 'pasa load' from the national government," he said.

"May karapatan din sa peace of mind ang mga komunidad na naghihintay sa kanilang pagdating," he said.

Over the weekend, thousands of stranded passengers hoping to go back to their home provinces were brought to the Rizal Memorial Stadium in Manila under the Hatid Tulong program, drawing criticism over the crowding that violated government's own physical distancing protocols.

The passengers are given rapid tests before being cleared for trips. As of Tuesday, 25 had tested positive for COVID-19 through rapid testing and are subject to confirmatory swab tests.

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