10 Japanese in hospital after eating 'pochero'?

The Department of Health regional office yesterday confirmed receiving a report about 10 Japanese tourists that were downed from food poisoning allegedly after eating "pochero" from a restaurant in the city Wednesday evening.

DOH-7 director Susana Madarieta, in an interview over DyHP yesterday, said her office received the report from a tourist guide, Dennis Chiong, who said the 10 Japanese have been taken to and confined in a private hospital since then.

Mr. Chiong, who worked as the guide of the Japanese tourists and was with them when they took the "pochero" meal from the restaurant, was not however among those hospitalized.

Dr. Madarieta said that she already tasked Dr. Evelyn Villamor of the Cebu City Health Department to investigate the matter.

The Freeman failed to get word from Mr. Chiong himself but his mother Thelma confirmed to DyHP Radio that it was her son who relayed the report to the DOH-7.

It was learned also that Mr. Chiong planned to ask for help from the City Police Criminal Intelligence and Investigation Branch, and the National Bureau of Investigation.

CIIB head, Supt. Paul Labra II, for his part said his office would investigate the case as soon as it receives the complaint and the request for assistance.

The restaurant management however was somehow surprised of the report saying that it could not be determined with certainty that it was the food there that caused the alleged food poisoning of the Japanese tourists.

Kan-Irag Restaurant operations supervisor Merlie Melendez said there were a lot of customers who ate pochero in the restaurant but she wondered why only the 10 Japanese complained of food poisoning. "Daghan man nangaon diri, nganong sila ra man?" she asked.

The reported time that the 10 Japanese ate the pochero was between 6 p.m. and 11 p.m. but Melendez said the restaurant had about 300 customers who ordered and ate pochero during those hours.

Melendez further clarified that the ingredients the restaurant uses in preparing its food are always fresh and that the volume of pochero often falls short with the demand.

In cases when there are excess food, restaurant employees either eat them or take them home. - Gregg M. Rubio