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DOH-RITM communication manager on Duterte’s performance: “He’s just the President, he may not know what he’s saying”

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The communication manager of the Department of Health’s Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (DOH-RITM) is being criticized on social media after she downplayed the role of President Rodrigo Duterte on the fight against COVID-19.

On a Facebook post, Geli Blanco of RITM tried to calm down her friends who had watched the Malacanang press conference on Monday by saying that the President doesn’t know what he’s saying.

According to her, President Duterte is not the only one should rely on the fight against the virus.

“To my friends who’ve watched the Malacañan interagency meeting stream last night: Please, do not lose hope. He’s just the President.”

“He may not know what he’s saying but our doctors, healthcare workers, scientists, medical technicians, researchers—hell, even Sec Duque, Dr. Carlos, DOH/RITM execs, public and private hospitals are all working together,”

She ensured the netizens that all health workers are doing their best to prevent the spread of the virus in the country.

“I know for a fact that all hands are on deck, and none of them had been sleeping on the job. I know for a fact that interventions are underway, I know for a fact that supplies are coming, I know for a fact that we can see this through.”

“Please, keep the faith. He’s just the President; there are a lot more of us who knows things for a fact.”

The post of Blanco reached some known supporter of President Duterte and they accused the communication manager of trying to sabotage the government.

On a Facebook post, Blogger Krizette Laureta Chu gives a theory why that the government may be really hiding the real statistics of the virus because the head of the communication office of DOH RITM is an “anti-Duterte”

“SO THERE GOES YOUR THEORY THAT THE GOVERNMENT IS HIDING POSITIVE CASES FROM YOU.” Chu said.

“If the head of the communications team of RITM is anti Duterte, why would she lie to make this government look good?” she added.

Radio host Mark Lopez also urged the government to fire Blanco.

“At the risk of looking and sounding petty, I am going to go out on a limb and call out the Department of Health (Philippines) and the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) to please FIRE or CANCEL the consultancy or employment contract of your Communications & Engagement Manager, Angeli Jane “Geli” Blanco,” Lopez said.

“Not for anything else, but at this critical point, it really does not inspire confidence and trust when someone who is vehemently anti-Duterte is in charge of Comms of a crucial health agency,” he added.

He explained that it’s not very helpful that the people working in the government like Blanco doesn’t even trust the current administration.

“I am sure Ms Blanco is competent in her craft, but when she is so vocal and so expressive of her hate and distrust against the administration, and her clear choice of politics, I am afraid that this will not be helpful at all. We have enough problems as it is… Tapos may ganito pa na anay sa nakapasok sa mismong gobyerno.”

Blanco is not yet giving a statement on the criticisms being threw against her.

“Libre na!” Philhealth to shoulder the cost of COVID-19 testing

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The Filipinos don’t need to worry anymore about the testing cost for the COVID-19 as the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) will now shoulder its expenses.

Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles said in a statement that the Philhealth’s decision is part of President Rodrigo Duterte’s action against the COVID-19.

The free testing of COVID-19 could encourage more Filipinos to have a test.

“The President recognizes that everyone in the country is concerned about COVID-19 and the threat this poses to the health and lives of our loved ones, especially vulnerable individuals like senior citizens,” he said Wednesday.

“Given this, the last thing we want is for our citizens to worry about medical costs and expenses. Their only concern should be their well-being and the well-being of their families,” he added.

Nograles said that they’re also rushing to produce more testing kits to identify more cases of COVID-19 as soon as possible.

Yesterday, the FDA approved the testing kits developed by local scientists which were funded by the Department of Science and Technology (DOST).

“We are fast-tracking the deployment of these kits so these can be used at the soonest possible time. Per Dr. Destura of Manila Healthtek, the rapid diagnostic test kit for COVID-19 is set for field validation study, and that UP PGH and the National Institute for Health have agreed to support the study,” Nograles said.

The cost of UP-made testing kits only costs less than P1,500 unlike the imported which costs around P8,000 to P30,000.

As of writing, there are already 33 positive cases of COVID-19 in the Philippines.

President Rodrigo Duterte on Sunday declared a state of public health emergency throughout the Philippines.

“#UbuhanSiDuterte!” Twitter users wants to cough on President Duterte amid COVID-19 problem in PH

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Amid the COVID-19 scare in the country, some Twitter users started a campaign urging the people to cough on President Rodrigo Duterte.

The topic #UbuhanSiDuterte has gone viral on Twitter yesterday amid the criticisms being received by the President from the netizens because of the rising cases of COVID-19 in the Philippines.

Coughing is one of the ways to transmit the COVID-19 to another person.

It’s already known that the 73-year-old President has health problems already, and it’s not advisable for anyone to cough on the President.

“Because Duterte does not want to SOLVE THE ISSUE OF COVID-19 since he, himself, is another strain of virus lmaoooo it is THAT simple. STREAM ITZY’s WANNABE and#UbuhanSiDuterte,” netizen @tomflordeliza said.

“You have elected as President of the Filipino people….pero actions speak louder than words. You are the president of POGOS and protector of China’s interests ACTUALLY #UbuhanSiDuterte,” netizen @andiesanjuan tweeted.

“People who are crying out ‘respect the president’ over #UbuhansiDuterte sound like your class vp standing at the teacher’s table, while your class president stormed out,” @scoutmagazine wrote.

However, some netizens and even critics of the President didn’t like how some Twitter users wanted to cough on Duterte.

“Critics of Duterte have become so toxic that they’d wish him death or harm. Blinded by so much hatred that they now resorted to deplorable stunt like this “UbuhanSiDuterte” hashtag. These people have lost a sense of decency, morality. They’re no longer capable to rationale thinking,” netizen @TishaCM said.

“It’s so ironic how people want to SOLVE THE ISSUE OF COVID-19 while making #UbuhanSiDuterte a trending on twitter. Such a toxic society,” netizen @jnrckslvnt remarked.

“U guys don’t know how to respect the president. Toxic Filipino culture. Don’t make #UbuhanSiDuterte trend. Most of the Filipinos doesn’t know how to respect the President, bansa pa kaya natin? Lmao. Always bineblame ang government kapag May major problem ang country,” netizen @mxmnthl wrote.

As of writing, the said topic was already removed to the trending topic list of Twitter.

 

 

“Simot sa mamimili!” LOOK: Shoppers made groceries empty amid COVID-19 scare

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Amid the COVID-19 scare in the country, some products in different groceries in Metro Manila were out-of-stock because of some shoppers who wanted to ensure that they’re going to have a sufficient supply of daily needs.

Netizens showed on social media how the groceries their visited were almost empty because the consumers were already stockpiling their daily needs like processed foods, cans, and sanitary supplies.

Khristianne Kaye who went to Lands and SNR in Metro Manila posted some photos showing that the food supplies in the said grocery stores were almost empty.

“We went to landers and snr, sobrang dami tao kaya we decided to go to hypermarket kasi most of the necessities and yung milk ng babies namin doon available.. as of 7pm today.. nag papanic buying ang mga tao Nakakatakot … lalo na ang nasa isip namin is ung mga bata.. sana matapos na to,” she said.

This is also what another netizen saw when she visited a grocery store in Quezon City.

Meanwhile, some grocery stores already implemented one alcohol per customer policy to prevent resellers from hoarding it.

Another netizen then criticized a businessman for selling overpriced sanitizers online.

“OK LANG SANA KUNG SAMPUNG PISO OR KINSE PESOS LANG ANG TUBO EH KASO HINDI EH HALOS 90 TO 150 ANG TUBO SOBRANG DI NA MAKATARUNGAN!” netizen Ellen Quizela wrote.

The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) already reminded the netizens that hoarding food, face masks, and sanitizers are “unnecessary” despite the rise in cases of COVID-19 in the country.

“Ang dami pang laman ng mga grocery. Hindi kailangan mag-stockpile,” Lopez told reporters.

“Monitored natin ang prices lalo na ang basic necessities… ‘Wag magpanic at huwag ubusin ‘yung laman ng grocery. Hindi kailangan,” he added.

 

Group asks Pres. Duterte to let VP Robredo handle COVID-19 problem: “If the President is not capable, give the power to the VP”

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A group urged President Rodrigo Duterte to pass his powers to Vice President Leni Robredo amid the spread of COVID-19 in the country.

On a Facebook post, Samasa Kontra Mandarambong criticized the way President Duterte handled the press conference about COVID-19 on Monday, saying that he didn’t offer any solution to the problem.

According to them, the President was supposed to address how the government is preparing to help the people, especially the needy.

“The President finally showed up at a late-night press conference when the nation needed to be assured that the government was on top of the Covid infection. With the rise of positive cases from 10 to 24 in a matter of hours, he only reiterated the DOH admission that we lacked test kits and that he was suspending classes in NCR until March 14. Even the lowest level official could have done this. He offered no solution to the problems: nothing was said on how to address the shortage of test kits, the water rationing that prevents people from proper handwashing (other than to say he will force the China-funded Kaliwa Dam on us which will take 2 more years), and the possible hit on our economy (other than promising to spend all money on rice for the poor). He did not answer the problems a leader should address,” the group said.

“All we saw was an incapacitated President who, instead of providing leadership at this critical time, could not make clear, coherent decisions. He could not even think straight,” they added.

They also called out the President for answering the questions of some reporters about his relationship with China, Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs) and other topics that not related to COVID-19.

“That press con was nothing but whim of a child who had just woken up at 10 pm. Must have been snippets from his long dream. For how does one jump from talking about COVID to tilapias, to VFA, to his “respect” for Trump, and even endorsing Trump for next US elections? He even brought up his personal grudge against US Senators,”

The group then suggested that if the President cannot give any solution to the problem that even first world countries are having a hard time solving, Duterte should just pass the powers to Vice President Leni Robredo.

“If the President cannot lead, then he should delegate it to the one who can. If he is not capable, then he should give it to the one who can. We need a sober, hard working, capable leader at the helm of this fight to save countless lives,” they said.

“In his entire administration, there is only one official who has what it takes to get the job done. She has done more than what her measly budget allowed. She has shown she is sober yet relentless, hardworking, and capable of making rapid but thoroughly studied assessments of the problem and more importantly providing a clear solution. Her analysis of the failed drug war was spot on despite the fact she held the job merely for 19 days. As Vice-President, Leni Robredo has the duty to lead when the President cannot,” they added.

“We should all demand that he appoint Vice-President Leni Robredo to do this fight. He owes it to all of us, especially the 16 million who trusted and voted for him. If the President is not capable, give the power to the Vice-President. If the President cannot lead, let the Vice-President lead,” they also said.

As of writing, the post already reached thousands of shares on social media.

Vice President Robredo already asked the netizens to protect themselves and share verified info about COVID-19.

“Kaya naman patuloy din ang pagpapaalala natin sa ating mga kababayan na huwag mag-panic, maging kalmado at alerto, at magbahagi lamang ng mga wastong impormasyon mula sa mga kinauukulan,” she said.

 

President Duterte decides that the lockdown of National Capital Region is still unnecessary: “I hope not. I hope God will have mercy”

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President Rodrigo Duterte refused the suggestion of  Albay 2nd district, Rep. Joey Salceda, to lock down the National Capital Region (NCR) after the government confirmed the first local transmission of COVID-19 in the country.

Salceda on Monday suggested a one-week lockdown of NCR to prevent the spread of the virus in other provinces.

“Everyone is a suspect now, thus, the need for isolation,” Salceda said.

Salceda insisted that the safety of the Filipino people is more important than the economic losses from closing down the NCR.

The lawmaker proposed the implementation of the following measures during the lockdown.

  •     suspension of classes,
  •     work stoppage,
  •     no bus trips,
  •     no domestic flights, and
  •     closure of South Luzon Expressway and North Luzon and Expressway and railways.

However, President Duterte said that the proposed lockdown is still premature, and he’s hoping that they’re not going to reach the point that they need to forcefully close NCR.

According to the President, the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases are not enough to close down the capital region that could affect millions of Filipinos.

“We have not reached that kind of contamination, with this transmission, you want to close down the economy this time?” Duterte said.

“There will be a time I suppose, I hope not. I hope God will have mercy on the Filipino people. It’s too early at this time,” he added.

The President is also concern that the lockdown of NCR could badly affect the people living there because of the possible shortage of basic needs.

“Hindi ko sinasabi na hihintayin kong magkasakit lahat, but you have to balance, eh wala ng magpasok ng bigas, wala ng magpasok ng gasolina, tapos i-lockdown mo,” he said.

Health Secretary Francisco Duque also said that the suggestion of Salceda is premature.

“The protocol, in fact, includes that it might be premature to do it at this point. So we will have to wait until evidence of sustained community transmission is presented,” he explained.

As of writing, there are already 24 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the country, most of them are currently being treated in NCR.

“Hindi takot mahawa!” President Duterte is not going to follow ‘no-touch’ policy amid COVID-19 scare

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President Rodrigo Duterte declined the “no-touch” policy proposal of the Presidential Security Group (PSG) amid COVID-19 scare.

In a press conference on Monday, Duterte called the proposal as nonsense, saying that he’s not afraid to get infected by COVID-19 because he’s already prepared for the worst.

“Kalokohan yan… I will shake hands… Alam mo kung tawagin na ako ng Diyos sa oras na ito, pupunta na ako, tapos na ako, naging Presidente na ako… pinakamataas na maabot ng isang tao, ang mga anak ko okay na,” Duterte said.

The President said that even his partner Honeylet Avacena cannot stop him from attending events because he believes that visiting different locations in the country is part of his job.

However, he said that he might agree not to attend some events if some of his staff or the audience refuse to go because of being afraid to get infected by COVID.

“I will not decline invitations, I will shake hands with everybody, I am going to Mindanao visit my soldiers, and to congratulate my warriors,” the President said.

According to the proposal of the PSG, personalities who are planning to go near the President should be screened carefully.

They’re also planning to implement the same rules to the presidential family.

“These include PSG personnel, politicians, and dignitaries. Large crowd gatherings with President Duterte as guest of honor and speaker shall be assessed and could be canceled not only for his safety but also for the attendees,” PSG commander Colonel Jesus Durante said.

“All established health protocols and preventive measures are continuously in effect to all PSG personnel and the whole Malacañang Complex.” he added.

“Wag ng magpatuli?” Duterte critic says that circumcision should be only an option because its “outdated” already

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A netizen on Twitter who’s also a critic of the Duterte administration believed that it’s already the right time for the Filipinos to choose on their own when it comes to circumcision.

On a Facebook post, netizen Juan Bisaya said that Filipinos should not be required to get circumcised if they don’t like to “lose a part” of themselves.

He called his advocacy as #intactivism.

“It’s circumcision season in the Philippines again. Boys, you don’t have lost a part of yourself because “God” or society tells you to. Circumcision is unnecessary and outdated,” he said.

Getting circumcised is part of the Philippines’ long historical tradition and is considered an obligatory rite of passage for males; boys who have not undergone the ritual are labeled “supót” and face ridicule from their peers.

And this is what happened to Juan Bisaya when his post gone viral on social media.

Most of the social media users who saw his post after being shared by netizen Keiji Labadisos accused him of being uncircumcised or supót.

Some of them also explained why getting circumcised could also improve the health of men.

“As far as what I have been taught, circumcision is a necessity for a man’s hygiene. Peeling or taking off skins on the tip of your genitals makes it easier to be cleaned,” netizen Josh Mallo said.

“If wala sa relihiyon mo ang circumcission then… Hygiene purposes never ever become outdated by the way,” netizen Shelala Saifo said.

Some netizen also sided with Juan Bisaya, like Vonn Russell Vargas Olfindo who admitted that he’s uncircumcised.

“I’m uncut here in a predominantly cut population in the Philippines,” he said.

Amid the criticisms he received, Juan Bisaya called his bashers as “toxic”.

“So I speak out against circumcision and got noticed for a very unpopular opinion. It’s tiring, but you can’t really expect an intelligent conversation with people that are considered one of the world’s most ignorant even if they’re considered educated,” Juan Bisaya said.

He also admitted that he was circumcised after being born.

Do you think that the circumcision tradition should stop in the Philippines? Share your thoughts below.

 

Radio host to Sen. Pangilinan: Saan ka kumukuha ng kapal ng mukha para turuan ang gobyerno?

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A radio host slammed Senator Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan after he complained about the state of the Filipino rice farmers.

In a privilege speech, Pangilinan said that the Rice Tariffication Law negatively affected the farmers and described the situation as “worse than the Japanese occupation” in the Philippines during the WW2.

“Mahirap na magsasaka lalo pang pinahihirapan. Binhi, mahal. Krudo, mahal. Abono, mahal. Insecticide, mahal. Upa sa tanim, mahal. Tapos bibilhin nila palay na napakamura. Paano makakabayad sa inutang na puhunan? Patay ang magsasaka,” Pangilinan said.

“Anihan na pero tila wala pa ring aksyong ginagawa ang gobyerno. Wala pa ring pagbabago sa presyo ng palay. Dito sa Pampanga, nine pesos per kilo. Maawa po kayo sa mga magsasaka,” he added.

The Senator also said that the farmers are only asking a little help from the government.

“Nasa isang emergency situation tayo at kailangan ng ating mga magsasaka ang maagap na tulong. Ang liit ng hinihingi ng mga magsasaka sa atin para mabuhay at huwag umalis sa kanilang mga bukid at magpapatuloy ng pagbubungkal ng lupa para tayong lahat ay makakain,” he said.

Radio host Mark Lopez didn’t like the message of Pangilinan to the government and asked why the Senator was lecturing the government.

According to Lopez, Pangilinan had the chance to fix the problems of the farmers during his time as the Presidential Adviser on Food Security from 2014 to 2015.

“Mr Pangilinan, you were once in power when you were Presidential adviser on Food Security. WALA KA NAMAN NAGAWA. WALA! And you are part of the most INEPT administration ever. What makes you think you have the ascendancy to discuss the problems of farmers eh isa ka sa umabuso?” Lopez said.

“Di nga, ano ba ang K ng mga opisyales ng dating administrasyon na magkukukuda at mag lecture pa sa kasalukuyang gobyerno kung ano gagawin? San ba talaga kumukuha ng kapal ng mukha itong mga katulad ni Kiko Cuneta?” he added.

Pangilinan is a known critic of the Duterte administration.

The post of Lopez already reached 3,300 shares on social media.

 

Source: [1] [2]

Infectious disease expert answers important questions about COVID-19: “No virus can defeat us”

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An infectious disease physician working at the University of the Philippines, Manila answered important questions about the COVID-19 after the government confirmed the local transmission of the virus in the country.

On a Facebook post, Dr. Edsel Maurice Salvana answered five questions related to the COVID 19.

According to Dr. Salvana, the netizens should not assume that there was already a “sustained community transmission” in the country despite the new cases being reported in the Philippines.

He also denied that the Department of Health (DOH) underreported the cases of COVID-19, saying that the agency is updating the public as fast as possible.

Dr. Salvana also explained that it’s normal for any country to miss some cases of COVID-19, citing that even the United States government also has missed.

The expert said that DOH’s daily reporting of new cases means that they’re continuing testing the possible carriers of the virus.

He also said that each COVID-19 test costs the government 5,000-8,000 pesos and some of the kits are still having errors.

The expert said that the best thing that the Filipinos can do is to distance themselves in crowded places and follow the instructions from the government.

You can read his whole post below:

Deeper breath. Four new cases in the Philippines. Let’s dissect what this means for us.

1. Does this mean there is sustained community transmission?
No it doesn’t. Two of the four new patients had travel history, while the other two had contact with a confirmed case. There is still a clear epidemiologic exposure and so hopefully we still have a chance to control with quarantine and contact tracing.

2. Is DOH underreporting cases?
If you look at the timeframe between testing and reporting, it is no more that 24 to 48 hours. DOH is reporting as soon as it can, with some leadtime for contact tracing so that people can quarantine themselves as soon as possible. So there is no underreporting. The more relevant question is are we missing cases.

3. Are we missing cases?
The best surveillance systems in the world miss cases. The US CDC have tracked cases with no travel history after cryptic community transmission over 3 to 6 weeks. There are WHO protocols that we follow. We have two surveillance systems. The first one is the one that identifies PUIs and PUMs based on travel or contact with a known case. A second one, SARI, looks for unexplained pneumonias and clusters of pneumonia in the community. This is how DOH picked up case #5 out of the 10. This was due to the excellent clinical judgement of a private infectious disease physician who decided to test based on SARI priniciples.
The fact that DOH DETECTED the 10 cases means that TESTING IS BEING DONE. More than 700 people have been screened according to established WHO protocols. Due diligence is being observed.

4. But why don’t we test more if we are concerned of missing cases?

Each test costs the government (aka you) 5,000 to 8,000 pesos. Testing is complicated and not many places are capable of doing the test well. Even the CDC in the USA had a major error in their test. Capacity is being expanded. A Filipino kit is being validated. These are all happening as we speak. However we still need to prioritize testing to the most probable because we cannot test everyone at this time.

5. What happens next?
Based on the Chinese experience, the only thing that seems to have a major impact on transmission is social distancing. We do not want to wait until we have a case load as high as Wuhan because even they had a hard time controlling and they have much more resources than we have. We need to think of preemptive social distancing now if we want to have a chance to contain. If this happens. PLEASE follow instructions and understand that a sacrifice is being asked of everyone FOR THE GREATER GOOD. Now is the time to help each other by putting our individual impulses aside and being proactive.

The post of Dr. Salvana already reached 1,700 reactions and 2,200 shares on social media.

As of writing, DOH already reported ten new cases of COVID in the Philippines.

Source: [1]

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