As expected, the men in the palace decided to extend the quarantine. Back to another Q version — from Enhanced Community Quarantine to Modified ECQ. The virus won’t give an F about the extra letter and it will stick to its schedule. With the constant play on the alphabet combos, the IATF might as well be renamed as the Q continuum (oops. a Star Trek reference).
Adding an M does not mean that it is all safe now. It means people can go back to work at their worksites (if allowed). Sadly, the country has to do this as not everyone can do remote work. Yes. Various industries still demand that people show up to push buttons, fill up forms and turn screws. It’s damned if you do or damned if you don’t — sacrifice your safety for work in order to to earn money or sacrifice the work opportunity but go hungry. Any industrious and self-respecting Pinoy family man/ worker simply does not roll over and die. Vaccines could help, IF THEY WERE AVAILABLE for EVERYONE. But yeah, even with the twin jabs, you still run the risk of getting infected, but not as severe as zero vaccination. I side with the doctors on this one.
Sick people = Sick Economy
Bless the souls of the business owners pushing whatever means to get their workers vaccinated. It’s the right thing to do. It also makes good business sense.
With the country filled to the brim with smart people, you can expect debates about reopening the economy — or arguing about letting people work so they can earn their own money to buy goods and avail of services. Yes. The money gets plowed back into businesses for the repetitive cycle of national wealth-building. True. Government cannot sustain providing cash aid forever.
People are part of vast supply chains (and supply of cash inflows) that are affected by the onslaught of COVID-19. I sure hope that economists (and politicians) do not think of workers as cannon fodder just to get our numbers up. It’s not like our labor supply are all plug and play. If the vast working class gets sick, they don’t simply take a pill and go back to work the next day. With the current virus, workers can get knocked out for a couple of weeks (hopefully, they have health insurance). If they are unlucky, they get knocked out permanently (hopefully, they have life insurance). Gone are the days of the immortal Filipino worker.
Dati pag may bagyo, pasok pa rin. Ngayon virus na nakakamatay na binabangga natin pero may matibay pa rin pumapasok. Di naman yan upgrade no?
The average Juan hit by this crisis will most likely end up thousands of pesos in debt (or if unlucky, end up as a debt-free corpse). Billionaires will still end up financially on top after this crisis (if unlucky, gets some foundation posthumously named after them).
