MANILA – Former Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle has tested positive for the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19).
According to the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) news website, Tagle tested positive for the virus upon his arrival in Manila on Thursday.
The Holy See Press Office, in a report published by the Vatican News, confirmed the announcement on Friday evening.
The report added that Tagle is asymptomatic and currently under quarantine.
It said he had undergone a Covid-19 swab test in Rome on September 7, which turned out to be negative.
Tagle is the first Roman curia dicastery head to test positive for Covid-19.
He is currently the Prefect of the Congregation for the New Evangelization of Peoples in the Vatican.
Tagle was appointed by Pope Francis to the post in December 2019.