President Duterte’s declaration Monday night of the Luzon-wide enhanced community quarantine to contain the COVID-19 outbreak was met with great trepidation by millions of workers, particularly those who barely survive on a measly daily wage.
Where will they — many of whom are one missed paycheck away from starvation — get the money to tide them over the entire month that Luzon is under virtual lockdown, with companies and establishments directed to close and Filipinos urged to stay in their homes, their movements restricted to the essential trips to buy food or medicine? Will they still have a job next month when the quarantine is expected to be lifted?
And those who are expected to go to work at this time — like frontliners in hospitals, and employees of drugstores, convenience stores, banks, business process outsourcing companies, power and water utilities, and manufacturing companies — how are they supposed to get there when public transportation has been scrapped and city borders closed?
Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles’ suggestion is to walk to work. Easy for him to say; how is that feasible for those who may work in Makati, for example, but live in Antipolo where rent is cheaper? Nor is the work-from-home arrangement universally viable, since not everyone has a computer at home, much less high-speed broadband internet connection.
Mr. Duterte’s rambling address offered few specifics to address these gut issues. At one point, he casually ordered Social Welfare Secretary Rolando Bautista to “utilize all vehicles of government available, just go around and maybe ask if there is somebody starving or in need of food,” and directed barangay captains to fulfill their “mandatory duty” to provide their constituents “at least food, rice and some…. ano ’yung ulam pwede ninyong ibigay sana para sa ating mga kababayan.”
If only it were that simple. Suddenly, in one stroke, it’s now the main responsibility of barangay captains and LGUs to provide for the daily welfare of millions of Filipinos (Luzon’s population is around 53 million) — on pain of sanctions, per the President’s blithe warning.
But Mr. Duterte did direct the various departments “to put in place, with utmost dispatch, all feasible measures that will ease the burden of the community quarantine in our country, especially those who are living on daily wages, and small-medium enterprises.” Thus, the burden is now on these frontline agencies to show that the government indeed recognizes the gravity of the situation and is acting correspondingly.
The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), for one, should crack the whip on heartless individuals who take advantage of the dire situation to earn a fast buck. Last Monday, two persons were arrested in Pasig for selling overpriced thermal scanners — this at a time when hospitals are scrambling for vital medical equipment. The DTI must also put some muscle behind its latest memorandum circular enjoining lessors and owners of business spaces to “share the responsibility” by “waiving the corresponding rental fees and charges” for the duration of the quarantine.
The Local Government department can start by admonishing crass politicians like Manila Rep. Benny M. Abante and Councilor Princess Abante, who unbelievably chose this difficult time for gross politicking by sticking their images on gallons of badly needed ethyl alcohol they were giving away, and Caloocan Rep. Along Malapitan, who, not to be outdone, also had his image plastered on the alcohol sprays distributed to his constituents.
At least 6,000 workers in Metro Manila alone are now out of work because of the community quarantine, according to the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines. The Labor department should release posthaste the guidelines on emergency assistance for displaced workers. The DSWD, meanwhile, should reconsider its unexpected decision to also suspend the implementation of key antipoverty programs such as the unconditional cash transfer and sustainable livelihood programs during the quarantine, leaving the most vulnerable with nothing at their greatest hour of need.
The private sector is showing that it is not blind to the concerns of consumers, with companies such as Globe Telecom, Sky Cable, Manila Electric Co., the PLDT Group, and EastWest Bank providing their subscribers and clients a 30-day leeway on their payments. Many other private initiatives are underway, from sending food to frontliners to rallying donations for the purchase of more health equipment.
But it is still the government that must pull its policy levers to ensure the well-being of all, especially the most marginalized and sidelined of Filipinos who will bear the disproportionate impact of the sweeping community quarantine measures.