By Jason de Asis

SENATE OFFICE, Manila, November 21, 2010-Sen. Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan, chair of the senate on agriculture and food committee urges the Philippine government and other sectors to be united in monitoring the country’s farms to ensure that the avian influenza disease does not affect our country men.

The senator reported that avian influenza is back a few days ago and the first case of the disease was in Hong Kong, adding that the airport authorities are now tightening security and taking all possible precautionary measures to prevent the disease from entering Philippine territory.

“Nananawagan po tayo sa lahat ng sangay ng gobyerno, pati na sa ating mga kasama sa agrikultura, na maging mapagmatyag laban sa bird flu. Kailangan nating bantayan ang ating mga manukan at i-report ang anumang mga senyales ng bird flu sa ating mga alagang manok at maging sa ating mga mamamayan,” he said.

Bird flu symptoms include fever, sore throat, cough, headache, and aching muscles. Its complications are potentially fatal, eye infections, pneumonia (including viral pneumonia), acute respiratory distress, brain and heart inflammation.

“The government must do everything to protect the citizens in the said deadly disease,” he said, adding that we can’t count on luck to spare us, we may have been spared, but we must be complacent.

He calls for the full cooperation of all poultry raisers to report incidences of bird flu in their respective vicinities to safeguard public safety so as not to destroy their business. (Jason de Asis)