Better to be safe than sorry

YESTERDAY, Mayor Sara Z. Duterte announced that city governmentsponsored activities during the Araw ng Dabaw will be cancelled to prevent the spread of the dreaded 2019 Novel Corona Virus (2019-nCoV). On privatelyinitiated activities, the mayor said the city government will not endorse nor will have these cancelled as it will discuss with the ones initiating the activities, but in case these were pursued, they will be made to comply with measures necessary to stop the spread of the virus. The mayor also added that those families who would welcome or send off family members must do so in the comfort of their homes, not at the airport, to limit their exposure to other people in crowded places. This is practical not just because there is a virus, but because emotions can always be checked at home, not in crowded places. The problem with this outbreak is that because it is taking place during this era when misinformation is a huge challenge owing to the vulnerability of some sectors to fake news, these reports are hardly filtered that their spread are even faster than the virus is. The immediate action of the mayor is what is needed to ensure that the city has a set of measures as a means to prevent the entry of the virus. The measures may not totally prevent its entry, but one must remember that complacency is its best friend. Also, by making the announcement, the mayor was trying to reach out to the public to help them understand this plague and provide them with the context on how to stop its spread.