Covid-19 vaccines first before MGCQ
President duterte on Monday rejected the iatf recommendation to place the entire country under modified general community quarantine, which is the lightest quarantine classification that allows face-to-face classes for higher education institutions and paves the way for private and public offices to resume operations at full capacity. duterte’s caution echoes the recommendations of the Octa research Group, which warned that if the entire country were to shift to MGCQ on March 1, it would take less than a month for new cases to reach 2,400 daily—the level we saw in August 2020 that almost overwhelmed our hospitals.
Before you question the President’s decision, which gave weight to the opinion of medical experts who said that a shift to MGCQ would be risky and “contrary to sensible epidemic management,” let’s look first at what happened in the US where no Covid-19 restrictions were adopted under former President Donald J. Trump.
A graphic on the front page of the February 21, 2021 issue of The New York Times depicted the totality of Covid-19’s devastation in the US. It’s a grim but powerful visual made up of half a million dots: Each of the individual dots represents a life lost.
The first known Covid-related deaths in the US happened in February 2020. It took four months to reach 100,000 deaths. The toll hit 200,000 deaths in September and 300,000 in December. Then it took just over a month to go from 300,000 to 400,000, and about two months to climb from 400,000 to 500,000. That’s a fifth of the current 2.5 million global death toll.
Some Americans poured out their anger on social media. Cheryl Bauman said: “Absolutely heart breaking and so unnecessary. Selfishness and stupidity and lack of competent leadership brought us here. Thank you New York Times for this perspective.”
“The deadly results of bleach therapies and myriad other quack suggestions that also poisoned our democracy, by none other than the worst US president ever,” said Yiannis Kustas.
“My father is unfortunately represented by one of those dots [January 12]. Thank you for reminding us of the toll it has taken on us as families and as a country. He was days away from getting the vaccine. He had so many plans to travel and spend time with his granddaughters, but his life was needlessly cut short,” said Cristina Pierson.
“We can’t become numb to these numbers. Each human life is precious. Please stay vigilant. Wear a mask, get vaccinated, and keep your distance until this pandemic is under control. God bless all those who have died and those who continue to suffer,” said Josh Bernstein.
A new report from The Lancet Commission on Public Policy and Health found that 40 percent of Covid-19 deaths in the US could have been prevented if health measures such as wearing face masks and social distancing were adopted.
“Many of the cases and deaths were avoidable,” the commission said. “Instead of galvanizing the US populace to fight the pandemic, President Donald J. Trump publicly dismissed its threat [despite privately acknowledging it], discouraged action as infection spread, and eschewed international cooperation. His refusal to develop a national strategy worsened shortages of personal protective equipment and diagnostic tests. President Trump politicized maskwearing and school reopenings and convened indoor events attended by thousands, where masks were discouraged, and physical distancing was impossible.”
Are we doing better than the US? Do the math: The US, which has a population of 328 million, suffered more than 500,000 Covid-related deaths. The Philippines, which has a population of 110 million, reported 12,107 Covidrelated deaths.
The President’s position is clear: No MGCQ unless there’s a rollout of vaccines. “I cannot follow the example of other countries,” Duterte said, adding that the US, Brazil, Japan and South Korea all experienced a surge in cases after they opened up their economies. “Governance is not made of guesses. It has to be anchored on science.”
Political pundits have been harping about the Duterte administration’s “poor response to the coronavirus pandemic.” But a Pulse Asia survey conducted from September 14 to 20, 2020 gave the President a 91 percent approval rating.
We have a President that refuses to put people’s health and safety at risk. Many people see that as a blessing. To borrow from a Businessmirror columnist—t.g.y.f. Thank God You’re Filipino.