It's been a little over a year since the Philippines confirmed its first case of COVID-19. With a total of over 520,000 cases and 10,000 deaths as of writing, countless Filipinos have suffered the damages caused by this ongoing pandemic. Whether it was because of the easing up of restrictions or the goal of becoming a country with “one of the highest (number of testing) in the world”, we have recently recorded the highest number of daily cases in two months. Additionally, the UK coronavirus variant, the Philippines being one of the 45 countries with recorded cases of it, has also reached as far as Bontoc. At this point, it is pretty much an understatement to say that it has left our nation completely devastated.
Ranking 79th among 98 nations with an average score of 30.6, the Philippines still falls behind in terms of properly managing the pandemic and improving our healthcare system. This result seems to have made quite a drop from the “very good” grade of 85 percent that Malacanang gave to themselves back in September. Granted that we do indeed have “the best testing policy in the whole of Asia”, our economic growth has become the worst among our neighbors, not to mention the rate of corruption. While having a high testing rate is not something to brag about or a necessarily efficient solution, it appears as though “our biggest strength” has failed us.
Contrary to these statements, the issue regarding mass testing flooded our newsfeed during the early days of the pandemic. While the whole country pressed pause for what was almost a quarter of a year, thousands of asymptomatic patients remained untested. Under one of the longest and strictest lockdowns, not only were these limited resources wasted for public officials who were caught holding mass gatherings, but the govern- ment admitted to having never conducted one in the first place, only recognizing its importance much later on. In addition to their inconsistent announcements, many of our most prominent leaders in this field didn’t even have a clear grasp on the concept of mass testing. The very head of the Department of Health (DOH), Secretary Francisco Duque III mentioned that “there is no such thing” as one-is-to-one testing, even though mass testing entails the rapid finding and testing of only those who are possibly contaminated.
One of the greatest impacts that this lockdown had was on our economy. During the shift between the multiple modes of community quarantine, businesses had no choice but to close down and let go of millions of their workers — many of whom were relying on their daily wages for their means of survival. Amid this confusing period, 4.5 million Filipinos were out of work, reaching an unemployment rate of 10.4%, the highest in 15 years.
Considering the easing of restrictions, many expected that things would’ve gotten better by now — that it would not have been as bad as it was in the previous months. But with the economy “sinking deeper and deeper” and essential commodities’ prices soaring through the roof, a lot are hardly able to put food on the table. Saying that “it is not only the Philippines who suffers,” does not exactly make the situation any better, especially when the people require something more concrete. This sudden sense of camaraderie that came out
of nowhere should not justify the absence of an adequate response to this crisis. If the definition of “nabubuhay pa naman tayo,” means losing P2 billion daily and being buried under trillions of national debt without a solid solution to bounce back, what does that make of those who voted for the promise of “change”? Settling is not what we asked for when we put these leaders into office because in terms of surviving, we have narrowly made it. We shouldn’t be held down to the bare minimum of simply getting by when the majority could have lived and flourished, without having to lose their sole sources of income.
While mass vaccinations have already begun in some countries, the Philippines is yet again falling behind in this journey towards immunity. With richer countries purchasing most of the available vaccines, the structural inequalities on the access of vaccines placed developing countries like ours in a disadvantaged position. Duterte’s preference towards the Chinese and Russian vaccines has also left people in doubt about their safety and efficacy, considering the Dengvaxia controversy a few years ago. The Filipinos’ mistrust towards the vaccine only worsened when Duterte refused to have the vaccine on camera as he wanted to get it injected in the butt. This was a much different response compared to when he confidently volunteered to have himself be injected in public: “Experiment on me first, that’s fine with me.” Although he isn’t exactly obliged to keep his word or to film his inoculation, as the president of the country, he has the duty to make his people feel safe about getting the vaccine.
If that wasn’t bad enough, members of Duterte’s PSG and what is estimated to be around 100,000 Chinese POGOs were the first to receive the vaccine in the Philippines, even before a coronavirus vaccine was approved by the Philippine Food and Drug Administration. They tried to defend this controversial act by saying it was legitimately obtained and calling it a safety measure. During this process, they went against their own vaccination plan, which first prioritizes health workers, senior citizens, and the indigent population.
This issue circles back to what seems to be a common theme throughout this article — the lack of transparency. Truthful, well-researched, and unbiased information is the only way for them to earn the people’s trust back. Wanting a peer-reviewed, safe, effective, yet affordable vaccine should not be dismissed as “colonial mentality.” Why waste taxpayers’ money for a vaccine with only 50% efficacy, when others guarantee the Filipinos’ safety by an additional 40%? The take it or leave it attitude of the government doesn’t do anything but stir up more panic and suspicion towards their choice of vaccine. We need a united front of leaders — one that would stop giving the public unreasonable excuses but one that would instead, start addressing our questions and concerns.
It was during this time of lockdown that we were clearly able to see the double standards and misplaced priorities within the office. Under the implementation of the community quarantines, there were several different protocols we had to observe. Nevertheless, there were still people who disobeyed them. However, there was a great disparity between the weight of punishments across the different economic backgrounds. The poor were immediately arrested, caged, or even killed, without having a chance to explain themselves while the more privileged ones managed to get away with throwing parties or going outside after testing positive. Among those who broke regulations were NCR chief Debold Sinaso and Senator Aquilino Pimentel III, to name a few. What is the point of setting these restrictions when they could be bent around for the rich and influential? With the Duterte administration pursuing projects that seem to be fueled by his agenda to silence his critics, in just a span of a few months, he managed to pass an Anti-Terrorism Law and shut down one of the most beloved networks.
More than 365 days in and they are still constantly derailing their focus from the real problem — not the expensive infrastructure projects or the beautification of Manila Bay — but from the fact that we still have an ongoing pandemic that requires our primary attention. Our kababayans are dying each second while careless officials are throwing around insensitive comments to healthcare workers who are sacrificing their lives to uphold the security of our nation. And instead of doing something to lessen their burden, he proceeded to publicly threaten and challenge them to try revolting against him. For an administration that is not only indifferent but also self-serving, it still managed to garner a mysteriously record-high approval rating.
While it would have been nice to enter 2021 on a positive note, it seems as though we remain far from being able to put the pandemic behind us. The haphazard, lethargic response that we’ve seen since day one has only shown the incompetence of those in power.
So together, let’s stop settling and demand them what is expected. Let’s not stop shouting until we are heard. Let’s show them that not all problems have to become wrapped up in politics and power play. Let’s prove to them that it is possible to put away your egos if it guarantees our safety even only a minute sooner. Let’s continue to shed light on the real problems until it finally becomes too bright for them to mindlessly ignore.
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