We have to reopen the economy

The coronavirus continues in the country but the government has to relax quarantine measures, presidential spokesman Harry Roque said early this week. “I don’t think we have other alternatives but to open the economy,” he said. “If we don’t open the economy, we might die not because of the virus but because we have no livelihood.”

It is now almost four months since a lockdown on Metro Manila and the rest of Luzon was ordered by President Duterte, along with a state of calamity in the rest of the country, in an effort to stop the fast-spreading COVID-19. People were told to stay at home to protect themselves from the virus.

The lockdown – an Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ), later eased into a General Community Quarantine (GCQ), then further eased into a Modified GCQ (MGCQ) – closed down most businesses and offices. These are now gradually reopening and public transportation has also been gradually returning so the people can go back to work.

The World Health Organization (WHO) itself has acknowledged the economic problem resulting from the virus lockdowns. Last week, WHO Emergencies Director Michael Ryan said that while “too many countries are ignoring the ballooning cases of deaths and infections,” notably the United States and in South America, “there are good economic reasons that the countries need to bring their economies back on line.”

But, instead of placing an entire nation under lockdown, he suggested that strict measures be maintained in local areas where the virus is spreading uncontrollably, but that they be loosened where the transmission rates are down. In all cases, he said, physical distancing, hand-washing, testing, isolating cases, and contact tracing should be maintained.

We could apply this suggestion of breaking down the problem here in Metro Manila. In this region of 16 local cities and one town, some local governments have been more successful than others in keeping coronavirus cases down. They need not be lumped with those with high infection rates.

New findings about the way COVID-19 spreads should also be taken into consideration. Physical distancing may be effective in open-air crowds, in gyms, and in bars, but it was found in one study that the air blowing strongly from an air-conditioning unit in a small restaurant could also carry the virus.

Last Tuesday, the Department of Health disclosed that coronavirus cases are still rising in the country, but there are now fewer deaths. The fatalities are now down to 2.9 percent, from the previous 10 percent, Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said.

She also reported the clustering of cases in 314 barangays in Metro Manila and in 54 barangays in Cebu City. We might now take heed of the WHO suggestion about breaking down the problem and maintain the restrictions in these barangays and allow the other areas to return to normal more rapidly.

All these findings, she said, should make people more cautious. For it is indeed the people themselves who are ultimately the most responsible for their own safety