ARE WE on the right track as far as surviving the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is concerned?
Now in our second week of the President-imposed “community quarantine” in response to the COVID pandemic, we still have to see the silver lining of this “sacrifice” that has deprived us of the normal way of life.
How long can we stay at home without earning money from a job or business? How long can we “socially stand” and fend off the contagious disease?
It’s stressful to think of the uncertain answer to that question.
We have heard of our neighbors sighing, “Kon indi ta mapatay sa COVID, basi mapatay ta sa gutom.”
We are tempted to think of what might have been had the President listened to “concerned citizens” who, in mid-January 2020, asked him to impose a restriction on travel of Chinese citizens from mainland China because of the onset of a “mysterious disease” in Wuhan City, China.
It was not without valid ground; TV newscasts were showing individuals of that city walking wobbly and suddenly dropping dead.
Not even Health secretary Francisco Duque III could muster the courage to warn President Duterte about the risk of welcoming tourists and workers from the China mainland who might have been contaminated by the disease – initially called “novel coronavirus” (19-nCov), now “coronavirus disease 2019 or COVID-19.
The Senate had warned that in the previous year, 2019, some 1.7 million Chinese mainlanders visited the Philippines – including employers and employees representing the Chinese-run Philippine offshore gaming operations (POGOs).
There was that question hour in the House of Representatives on Jan. 29 when Rep. Loren Legarda (Antique) asked Duque, “Wouldn’t it be prudent to be proactive and ban temporarily mainland tourists?”
Duque answered, “If we do this, then the concerned country — China in this case — might question why we’’re not doing the same for other countries that have reported confirmed cases of novel coronavirus.”
Obviously, he was paraphrasing the President who had earlier opposed the proposed ban.
Fast-tracking to two months later, on March 12 (Thursday night), Duterte shocked the nation with an unexpected televised announcement imposing a month-long lockdown of the whole of Metro Manila to contain the spread of COVID-19, adding that he might call on China to help deal with the outbreak.
COVID-19 has gone pandemic, affecting 194 countries and territories. As of yesterday, the running world total as to the number of cases was 423,300. Of that number, 109,146 have recovered and 18,906 have died.
China as the source of the disease tops the “race” with 81,218 cases, followed by Italy with 69,176 and the United States with 54,916.
The Philippines as of yesterday had 552 cases, 20 recoveries and 35 deaths.
The one thing in common among the infected nations is the heavy presence of mainland-China tourists, businessmen and workers.
It is interesting to note that our neighbor, Indonesia, had 686 cases, 30 recoveries and 50 deaths. The figures are higher than those of the Philippines but are actually less proportionate vis-à-vis their populations. Indonesia’s population of around 273 million is more than double our population of 109 million.
Surprisingly, Indonesian President Joko Widodo has refused to impose a lockdown for fear of economic collapse, relying instead on nothing but his people’s compliance with his order to keep distance.
“The policy of physical distancing can halt the spread of the disease if people really comply with it,” he said.
As to who between Widodo and the other world leaders is correct, their post-COVID economy would tell. (hvego31@gmail.com/PN)
