FRONLINERS’ SITUATION DURING THE

PANDEMIC

Hailed as heroes of the pandemic, the frontliners in the nursing profession are
feeling anything but heroic these days, if their plight is to be the gauge. Long
overworked and underpaid, they lament that their plight is now aggravated by the
high risk of being infected with the SARS- coronavirus-2 that causes COVID-19.
Over the weekend, the Filipino Nurses United issued a statement bewailing the
lack of protection for its members in the frontlines of the dangerous battle against
coronavirus disease 2019. Nurses as well as doctors and other health
professionals have accounted for a significant number of those who have
succumbed to COVID- 19. As in other countries, Filipinos have acknowledged the
role of the health professionals in this challenging battle and hailed them as
heroes.
This situation could be eased with improved working conditions especially in
COVID facilities, and of course with better compensation. The nurses'
organization, however, is decrying the continuing delay in the implementation of
the salary increase for government nurses, which is mandated by law.
The nurses have been waiting for the pay increase for years, but it became bogged
down in litigation. Even after the Supreme Court ruled in their favor several
months ago, the nurses' long wait continues amid the pandemic. Unless the
government can provide the frontliners with proper compensation and full
protection against infection, all those paeans about their heroism will be nothing
but rhetoric.
Economic performance during the coronavirus pandemic is an indicator of the
effectiveness of the response to the public health crisis. Vietnam, for example,
had quickly embarked on aggressive testing for coronavirus disease 2019, contact
tracing and isolation, allowing the country to avoid prolonged widespread
lockdowns and to continue many economic activities.
In contrast, the Philippines, which now has the highest number of COVID-19
infections in Southeast Asia, has seen its worst quarterly economic contraction
since record keeping began. The country is now officially in recession, becoming
one of the worst performing economies in the region during the pandemic.
The challenge is to avoid becoming the regional laggard in recovering from the
pandemic. Analysts have warned that with the country struggling to contain
COVID- 19, it looks headed for slow recovery compared with its neighbors. The
country is seeing the difficulty of restarting the economy without sufficiently
addressing the public health crisis. Sick people simply can't go to work; sick people
can infect co- workers and shut down an entire office or government agency.
MORE FUN IN THE PHILIPPINES

After the disruptions caused by Taal Volcano’s phreatic explosion last

month, the country’s travel industry was hit by a second and worse
whammy: the emergence of coronavirus disease 2019 or COVID-19.
Players in the travel and tourism industry estimate their losses to reach
P20 billion if the disruptions last until March. At this point, however, it
looks like the contagion is bound to persist way beyond the first quarter
of the year.
COVID-19 continues to spread in other countries and the World Health
Organization is advising governments to brace for local transmission of
the virus that has killed 1,380 people mainly in China as of Friday and
infected nearly 50,000 others. With international travel plans on hold in
many countries, tourism-related businesses and downstream enterprises
in the Philippines are struggling. Industry players warn that if the crisis
persists past midyear, smaller enterprises may be forced to close shop,
putting people out of jobs.
People can help prevent such a disaster by boosting domestic tourism.
Even as large tourism-related gatherings have been canceled, people can
still explore domestic travel destinations, enjoy the sights, eat in
restaurants and buy local products. There are interesting places to
explore right in Metro Manila.
Contributing to domestic tourism does not mean ignoring the threat
posed by COVID-19. Proper hygiene such as regular hand washing as
well as cough etiquette must be observed. Health officials have stressed
that airborne transmission of the virus has not been reported. As
protection against droplet transmission, ordinary face masks, tissue
paper, handkerchiefs and alcohol must be on hand in case a mild
irritation induces sneezing or coughing. People who are
immunocompromised should take extra precautions.
The COVID-19 scare is likely to affect tourism during the country’s
peak travel season – summer particularly Holy Week. Those who
normally spend the season overseas can instead plan trips within the
country. It will help an ailing industry, and it could show how it’s truly
more fun in the Philippines.
NICOLE T. PASCUAL
9 - MARIGOLD
A BUDDIN THREAT
All that troublemakers need to do is stage one attack, to show what
they’re capable of, and their scare factor becomes magnified. Following
a grenade explosion in a Korean diner last week, four restaurants in
Quezon City reportedly received phone calls at different times on Friday,
threatening similar attacks unless the management paid a certain
amount, with P50,000 mentioned in two cases.
The four cases were reported to the Philippine National Police. Did other
establishments receive similar calls, but the owners were too worried to
report the threats? Did these establishments give in to the extortion?
Some individuals might pay up, if they fear that the threat is real and the
state is powerless to protect them.
People usually yield to extortion if perpetrators in similar cases are not
arrested and the crimes remain unsolved. This happened at the height of
the kidnapping spree in Metro Manila about two decades ago. After a
spate of ransom kidnapping cases, all that the thugs had to do was make
a phone call and threaten to kidnap the target’s child, spouse or other
loved one.
Protest rallies were staged, demanding an end to the crime spree.
Ransom kidnapping became one of the most lucrative industries in the
country – until the PNP launched a brutal crackdown, implementing
what the public suspected was an unwritten policy of taking no
prisoners.
As in any crime, the best deterrent to kidnapping at the time was the
certainty of being caught. Ransom kidnappings have since abated. Now
there appears to be a budding trend to engage in extortion using bomb
threats. Thanks to the grenade blast that rocked the Korean diner,
business establishments are taking bomb threats seriously.
Police can prevent this type of violent extortion from spreading by
arresting those behind the explosion in the Korean restaurant. At the
same time, the PNP and other law enforcement agencies must tighten
measures to stop the proliferation of explosives and bomb-making
materials. Why does it seem so easy for unauthorized persons to obtain a
grenade in this country?
Fortunately, there were no casualties in the grenade explosion that hit the
diner. Every effort must be made to prevent this problem from
escalating.

NICOLE T. PASCUAL
9 - MARIGOLD