A lawmaker from the opposition said the government should not blame the Filipinos for its failure to contain the spread of COVID-19.
ACT Teachers party-list Representative France Castro responded to Palace Spokesperson Harry Roque’s statement yesterday that Filipinos should be ashamed of putting the Philippines in the top spot with the most number of COVID-19 cases in ASEAN.
Castro pointed out the reason why the virus entered the Philippines is that the government disregarded the COVID-19 threat and that it treated China like its baby.
“Hindi mga Pinoy ang tunay na pasaway at tunay na dahilan ng mataas na COVID case rates at mababang safety ranking ng Pilipinas. Kaya nakapasok ang COVID dahil minaliit ang banta ng COVID-19 at bine-baby ang Tsina,” Castro said in a statement Thursday.
(Filipinos are not the real troublemakers and not the real reason for the high COVID case rates and low safety ranking of the Philippines. COVID came in because COVID-19 threat was belittled, and China was treated like a baby.)
Solon: Blame China, not Filipinos in COVID-19 spread
The solon also said the government until now has no realistic measures for mass testing and contact tracing that are supposed to be effective as per the experience of other countries.
“Kaya libreng lumalaganap ang virus dahil hanggang ngayon ay wala pang makatotohanang mass testing at contact tracing, na batay sa karanasan ng ibang bansa ay mga pinaka-epektibong paraan upang pababain ang mga nai-infect at namamatay. Hindi niya (Roque) dapat pinapasa sa taumbayan ang kainutilan ng pamahalaan,” she said
(The virus freely spread because until now, there is no real mass testing, and contact tracing, which is based on overseas experience are the most effective way to reduce infections and deaths. He (Roque) should not pass the government’s impotence to the people.)
Castro also called out the government for the supposed slow-paced procurement of Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs).
“Kaya maraming namamatay at nakaquarantine na frontliners dahil pagong ang procurement of PPE sets. Mas nakakahiya ang pamahalaang ayaw makinig sa mga panawagan ng mamamayan na nakabatay sa siyentipiko at medikal na paraan kontra COVID-19,” she said.
“Many Pinoys—especially the urban and rural poor, subsistence- and minimum-wage workers, even the lower sections of the middle class—are faced with the dreadful choice between breaking quarantine, thus risking infection, and dying of hunger because of the irresponsible imposition of lockdowns without government ensuring urgent socioeconomic relief.”