PNP: No pesticide spraying vs coronavirus

March 22, 2020

Philippine National Police spokesperson Brigadier General Bernard Banac has denied that the military would spray pesticide in the country to counter the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

“This is patently fake news and must be disregarded outright. The Inter-Agency Task Force on Managing Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-MEID) has denied any such flight operations,” Banac said in a statement on Sunday.

In a radio interview on the same day, Banac urged the public to avoid passing unverified information which might stir the emotions and cause panic among the public.

"I would like to call for social media users and netizens to be responsible in using social media and to avoid making stories and talk about it in chat groups," he said.

"When someone screenshots these (stories and conversations) it goes viral which is why many people get worried and scared of these activities that are (allegedly) planned which are not related to COVID-19," he added. Cristina Eloisa Baclig/DMS