Not for the faint-hearted

In spite of formidable barriers, our fight against COVID-19 will resonate in what ancient warrior Hannibal shouted to his Carthagenian army while in a siege of Rome in 201 BC: “Vinceremos!”

The present situation in the COVID front appears to be an uphill battle, as admitted by officials of IATF. A perceptive observer will not fail to notice the prevailing landscape.

“At all costs the battle must be won,” seems to be the common battle cry of the national leadership.

Today, it becomes clear that only two phrases best describe that leader: He is strong-willed and is brandishing an unwavering faith.

As seen by many, President Duterte

is armed by those two armors of confidence. Any other mortal could easily melt down and call it quits.

Consider the following roadblocks in Duterte’s waging the biblical battle:

One, the fund of the administration in fighting the battle is fast drying up. The logistics of the SAP is almost empty, and some of those already distributed are marred by illegal procedures.

Two, the administration’s front entity – the IATF – has been rocked by intrigues and even resulted in the resignation of one of its top consultants.

Three, the Office of the Ombudsman is now conducting investigation into alleged anomalies committed by top officials and senior executives of an agency of government.

Four, the plight of hundreds of locally stranded individuals has become a shame of the administration.

And, five, battling “an unseen enemy in a dismaying position where 83 percent of the citizenry say their lives have worsen during the past 12 months (SWS June 17, 2020).

And along with our battle posture, we must be inspired by what Admiral David Ferragut of the US Navy became famous for during the American Civil War when, facing enemy fire, he barked to his men, “Damn the torpedoes, full-speed ahead!”.