MANILA (UCAN): On November 4, after some 19 months of curfew-like restrictions, the Philippine government’s Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases approved the loweri ng of the pandemic alert level in Metro Manila [the National Capital Region] to Alert Level 2 beginning November 5—only a week after it was eased to Alert Level 3. The agency said the measure would remain in place until November 21.
Under Alert Level 2, cinemas, theatres, theme parks, swimming pools, libraries, museums and tourist attractions will be allowed to reopen for the first time in 2021. Children, who were previously banned from leaving their homes, will also be allowed to go to public places in the capital.
Nevertheless, two Catholic youth groups raised concerns over whether people would abide by Covid-19 prevention rules.
‘Business development is good. We need it at present to cushion the effect of the pandemic in our economy. But we must ease restrictions slowly, carefully, as the virus remains present and is still fatal to those who do not take safety precautions’
The Catholic Youth for Jesus movement and the AKAP [Ako ay Pilipino (I am Filipino)] Youth Foundation warned the government to put people’s health ahead of the economic benefits of easing restrictions.
“Business development is good. We need it at present to cushion the effect of the pandemic in our economy. But we must ease restrictions slowly, carefully, as the virus remains present and is still fatal to those who do not take safety precautions,” the group said in a Facebook post.
AKAP criticised what it called the sudden easing of restrictions, saying it was imprudent. One member, Alex Anonat said, “Prudence dictates applying measures to help the economy. But removing the curfew is not a good one because many young people will flock to bars and restaurants, especially during the holidays. An extended curfew would have been more prudent.”
The Philippine health secretary, Francisco Duque warned of spikes if people’s movements are not be restricted as Christmas draws near.
“I remind everyone to follow health protocols. If not, we may experience a surge like what happened in the UK and other countries,” Duque said on November 4, alluding to how in October, the United Kingdom experienced a surge of infections, recording almost 50,000 new Covid cases a day and giving it one of the worst infection rates on the planet.
He said a downtrend of infections in the Philippines was no reason for to violate social distancing and other protocols.
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“We are in for a good December and good holidays. But even as we go to Alert Level 2, we should be mindful of public health standards like wearing face masks and avoiding large gatherings at this time,” Duque added.
As of November 9, the Philippines had recorded 2,087 cases, bringing the cumulative number of infections to 2,085,294. There have been 44,521 deaths and 2,727,696 recoveries.
