As expected, city authorities lost no time in getting anti-covid 19 response more on-target as cases of community transmission continued to rise, as if being pushed up by a surging viral force. More barangays were added to the lockdown orders, for contract-tracing efforts to get off the ground unhampered by too much mobility. Fifteen communities on hard restrictions in just a day, more villages added to the list as a result of tracked down people in contact with those confirmed to be positive of the deadly disease.
Meantime, the pandemic situation has grown bad down under, the Metro Manila area principally, enough for the quarantine restrictions to be heightened back to modified enhanced community level. But as explained by Mayor Benjie, who has been doubling up in recent days as National Czar for the contract-tracing segment of the government’s covid struggle, the escalating climb in case incidences has atributary causes: the strengthened testing capacity, the increased mobility from point to point, and the re-opening of business and livelihood which have opened doors for people to get back with their economic life.
“More people are being tested, and results are getting out fast,” he said, allaying anxieties that things are getting out of hand. “Indeed, it’s quite concerning, but we’re dealing with this with aggressiveness and timely actions, down the road!”
Come to think of it, what’s happening in the nation’s metropolis sparked some kind of a pained outburst from the medical communities, enough for them to appeal for a direly needed “Time Out” reprieve, something that PRRD has quickly acknowledged and act on, though in somewhat peeved diatribes that have become, by now, typical of the man. No dearies, we’re not about to get through any upheaval of sorts, given the conciliatory attitude from both sides of the issues raised.
Which bring us to another telling sight, going by the numbers. Numerology hasn’t been much of a fervent thing for us, but the numbers just couldn’t tell a lie, unyielding to a stare-down, simply because they were real, daunting, forbidding even. Globally, the US still remains up there in the totem pole of rising cases and rising mortalities. The strongest power on earth is getting a powerful shellacking from this unseen, lurking enemy which has been striking almost at will.
In our neck of the woods within the Southeast Asian region, dear Philippines is likewise way up there, dislodging previous tally leader Indonesia. More cases, more fatalities on the upswing! If the MM area is that bad, how can Baguio get to liberalize border entry to domestic tourists expected to be coming from the lowlands? Not just a timely thought, given the perils coming from the afflicted places.
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Of course, it is worth noting how swift executive actions are dominating the social media these days. Timely reminders, they’re not just that. Because, stripped from the straight-forward nature of government messages, these advisory postings are telling the populace a crystal clear narrative: Let loose and you lose. Be reckless with your ways and you get the virus. Not scared of your life? Be scared of what may befall on loved ones. Stay safe at home, or stay buried six feet under.
Throughout the past four to five months, Baguio’s anti-covid struggle had been sterling. But of course, the steep ascent in case incidence is no surprise. It had to be that upward way, considering the influx of returning Baguio residents, and homecoming OFWs suddenly dislodged of overseas jobs, as well as local cargo handlers on return trip from places, where else but virus-gripped Metro Manila.
Sooner or later, the chances of getting infected, from one human to the next, were simply part of the normal order of transmissions, especially so that just one individual can be the primary source of secondary (about 10), tertiary (100, and so much so in an outward push.
To reiterate Mayor Benjie’s calm stance bespeaking of a crisis veteran, what is important is how swift responses are taken: identifying the people with whom the positive individuals had been in contact with, including others within the physical range of the expanded range. After contacted persons have been identified and the tracing done with, the afflicted communities are restored to pre-lockdown coverage, enough for community life to get going, even as the MGCQ quarantine level remained.
There is no arguing that the viral strain is still a long way in its lethal journey. Indeed, every day since mid-March has been a many-headed struggle involving critical aspects of the whole of society response that had been taken as a must-do for us to get past the pandemic.
Health infrastructure facilities had to be in tip-top efficiency for testing, tracing, treatment, and re-testing (depending on swiftly developing events). Protective gears had to be well-sourced to shield health frontliners from getting infected. Fresh replacements had to be harnessed to allow health workers enough reprieve from exhaustion and weariness.
And yes, all these aggressive responses take time and needs fresh funding resources to get things going. Lest it be scaled down in importance, the pandemic hit hard, not just the health and well-being of a populace grown weary of it all, grown hungry over time, grown despondent if and when the vaccine would be forthcoming.
In the last four months alone, grounded business operations have just begun re-opening, albeit forced to get back on ginger footing, if only because no business is just plain no business. But along with their resumption, jobs were reclaimed, livelihood access resumed. The wherewithal to revive came from re-opened public transportation, even if on limited hours, capacity, and effectiveness. But activities on leisure, recreation, tourism, hotel staycation were among the first to halt are still on waiting list, even if practically cajoled to get back to life.
Is it time to have the tailend economic forces — tourism and education — to pry the engines of activity open? Even now, tourism discussions are hovering between the devil and the deep blue sea. Open up now and we’d get the influx of wearied, depressed souls, no less compatriots, wanting to breathe the fresh Baguio air. Do that and we’d see the virus spread snapping up every lithe body around, locals here or locals there.
If today’s indications are anywhere viable, there seems no road to take at this time that will bring us to the Promised Land of a New Normal. To be sure, all these weeks of preparations should by now be taken practically coming from the Good Book to show us the way.
Let it not be swept under the rug that life is best protected and saved on the backbone of serious resolve. To plod on, if we must. To get our compliance with health protocols even stronger than before. To have no “pasaway” in our ways. Or we’ll all be passing away for good.
At day’s end, it’s all about time and how we make use of its opportunities. The sooner we do that, the better for us to keep going, still safely distant, but intimate enough to take care of others as we do for our sake.
About time, isn’t it?
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