Tagle issues ‘Oratio Imperata’ amid dengue, leptospirosis spike

The Archdiocese of Manila has issued yesterday an Oratio

Imperata, a prayer circulated amid a grave need or calamity, as the number of persons getting dengue fever and leptospirosis in the country has grown rapidly.

In a circular released on Thursday, archdiocesan chancellor Fr. Reginald Malicdem said Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle has requested the faithful to pray for the healing of those who fell sick with the diseases.

Tagle likewise asked for prayers to protect everyone from these and other illnesses.

“His Eminence Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle is requesting all of us to pray for the healing of those who are sick and for the protection of everyone from these and other illness,” Malicdem said.

The Oratio Imperata, written in both Filipino and English, is to be publicly “prayed kneeling” after the post-communion prayer in all masses starting Sept. 1.

Malicdem said Cardinal Tagle saw the need to call for mass prayers “because of the alarming number of those afflicted by dengue fever and leptospirosis” in the Philippines.

Tagle’s call came amid a national dengue epidemic declared by the Department of Health (DOH) earlier this month as the total number of cases and deaths from Jan. 1 to Aug. 10 reached of 208,917 and 882, respectively.

The DOH, meanwhile, recorded 1,070 cases and 120 deaths related to leptospirosis from January to Aug. 1, less than half of the total number in the same period last year.

Despite the marked decrease in cases, the health department in July warned the public against the bacterial disease “with the coming of rains and floods.”

‘Toad’ solution to dengue hit

Amid concerns over the release of poisonous cane toads in a barangay in Quezon City, a wildlife biologist yesterday warned against the release of invasive species of animals without appropriate study.

Carmela Española, an assistant professor at the University of the Philippines Institute of Biology, said the release of cane toads by Barangay Old Balara to supposedly combat the spread of denguecarrying mosquitoes may have lasting and dangerous impacts on the environment.

She cited Republic Act 9147 or the Wildlife Resources Conservation and Protection Act, which specifically requires a scientific study before a species is introduce to an ecosystem.

“They should be aware of the law. The release of an invasive species should be studied because it has socio-economic impacts, such as on human health,” she told The STAR yesterday.

Under the implementing rules of law, any proposed introduction of an animal species shall be subject to a scientific study, which should focus on its impact on the bioecology.

“The proponent shall also conduct public consultations with concerned individuals or entities,” it read.

The rules specifically prohibit the introduction of an exotic species, or those not originally found in the Philippines, without clearance from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.

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