We've passed the second week of the Luzon-wide Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ), and we BPO workers have already transitioned to work-at-home arrangements, working in shifts following company and government directives.

We’ve been busy helping our counterparts in the Visayas and Mindanao prepare for their own lockdown experiences. After all, we who are first to face difficulties should do everything to ensure that those who will inevitably follow are better equipped to face their trials. 

Even at this moment, some businesses are still operating, requiring their employees to report on-site. I remember the stories on Facebook of a supermarket cashier who had to walk from Pasay to Makati just to report to work, and of the delivery boys who had do their delivering on foot. (READ: Frontliners in a bind: Health workers fined P5,000 for backriding)

And like them, BPO workers provide essential services during this pandemic. 

Most people think that BPO companies are inconsiderate because they continue to operate even now. I understand the sentiment. I truly do. But why single us out? 

“Hindi rin ba tayo frontliner? Ano bang akala nila, sila lang ang nagtatrabaho? Na sila lang ang essential?” one of my colleageus chatted in exasperation. (READ: [OPINION] No to frontliner-shaming!)

Gross misconceptions

Last Wednesday, my internet connection acted up and I had to contact the network service provider. After a few minutes, an agent picked up the line, asked about my concern, and together, we proceeded to do the troubleshooting steps – to no avail.

“Teka lang, sir, tawagin ko po ‘yung supervisor ko," she said. 

I smiled and asked, “Ah, so pumapasok pa rin kayo on-site?” 

No answer. After a few minutes, we did another round of troubleshooting that solved my problem.

From solving internet problems, to taking food orders, to answering insurance inquiries and government service-related questions, there will always be a contact center agent ready to help you solve your problems in the midst of this pandemic. Kaya kung gagamit po kayo ng ruler, make sure po to use the same ruler for all. ‘Wag naman po short plastic ruler ang pang-measure at pamalo 'nyo sa iba, tapos sa amin long metal ruler; nasaan ang hustisya? 

Contrary to popular belief, BPO workers, our frontline agents, do not merely answer calls – we provide solutions systematically, creatively, and with increasing empathy at every moment. We endure bad, unreasonable behavior. We endure insults, racial slurs, and condescending comments even from fellow employees from other sectors. (Ay call center agent. Ah taga-BPO. In the name of all workers, I rebuke you!) Human labor, in all its forms, even within this dehumanizing global capitalist system, has a dignity of its own that should be upheld at all times. 

Please understand: this COVID-19 pandemic is the first of its kind and every measure we take continues to be a work in progress. Work from home arrangements are not as easy as it sounds. BPOs work with highly confidential information and it is our duty to be the champions of data security. We have security policies and protocols that must be followed – add to this the challenges in equipment and network infrastructure.

In a normal situation, employees work in shifts and take turns using company equipment. But network connectivity continues to remain a challenge for work-at-home arrangements. A secure, reliable, and stable internet connection is needed. This setup also holds true for other industries that rely heavily on an internet connection for their operations. And given the expensive but sorry state of our internet, we try to make do with what we have.

A lot of workers continue to work despite and through this pandemic to sustain their lives, and in so doing help us access necessary products and services. We can cry out of frustration, but at some point, we understand that while businesses could and should shell out generously in times like this, unplanned spending, cutting, stalling, and suspending operations can lead to reduced take-home pay, and worse, bankruptcy and closure for our workplaces.

And if some BPO sites continue to be staffed by agents on different shifts, their welfare and safety are of the utmost priority. Free and proper food and accommodations are ensured on-site. Testing and medical services incurred due to COVID-19 are covered by health care insurance. Shuttle services are provided and salaries, benefits, and other incentives have been released early and fast for all employees.

I have no illusions about the goodness of people, and business altruism is something that I always question. But what I am certain of is that we do not lack good people who try as hard as they can to strike a balance in protecting the lives and livelihood of their fellow employees in times like this. And at the end of the day, some people will need to make the hard calls to make sure everyone has a workplace to return to once this pandemic ends. – Rappler.com

Dom Balmes is a communications professional in the BPO industry and a struggling writer.

Paano ba maipapaliwanag sa ating mga kababayang nasa laylayan ng lipunan ang parating sinasabi ng Department of Health at mga frontliners na huwag lumabas ng bahay dahil naka-enhanced community quarantine ang buong Luzon, at nang 'di sila mahawa at makahawa? Bakit ang tigas ng ulo nila?

MANILA, Philippines – Based on current reports, the number of detainees incarcerated in our penal system is still 500% over capacity. This does not include persons kept in police stations awaiting commitment to city or provincial jails.

As our nation copes with the impact of COVID-19 and the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ), the lives of those incarcerated can only be described as daunting, because physical distancing is impossible to achieved in overcrowded, bursting-at-the-seams detention centers. 

These detainees are not yet convicted of the crimes they are charged with, still awaiting trials or sentencing, and yet they face possible death if they are not protected from the inevitable spread of the novel coronavirus.

With the court system frozen because of the ECQ, there are no hearings scheduled, so their incarceration is extended and their cases are on hold.

Our government, the courts, and legislative bodies must find a way to reduce overcrowding. The decriminalization of some offenses with very low bail requirement can be considered. This requires immediate attention as lives are on the line. (READ: [OPINION] Temporary relief for Persons Deprived of Liberty amid the coronavirus)

The United Nations also made a plea to countries to declog detention centers by releasing vulnerable, elderly, and low-risk offenders.

The daily allowance of P60 per day for every inmate barely meets their daily needs. In many cases, additional food delivered during visits by relatives supplements their daily food intake. With the lockdown, inmates face hunger and lack of nutritious meals.

Even before the COVID-19 crisis, deaths of Persons Denied of Liberty have been reported at very alarming rates. This crisis will put them in even worse conditions and will result in more deaths. (READ: 1 prisoner dies in Bilibid every day, says new chief doctor)

The wardens who are responsible for their welfare while incarcerated are also risking their lives. Their need for personal protection against contamination must be addressed by authorities.

A study must be conducted to determine if they also deserve hazard pay during the ECQ.

– Rappler.com

The images are the author's book Human Wrongs, published in 2018. 

There are already flashes of social unrest.

On Wednesday, April 1, residents from Sitio San Roque, an urban poor community in Quezon City, went out of their houses on rumors that aid was being distributed. Having violated quarantine rules, they were swiftly chased down by the police; 21 were arrested.

Here’s the awful truth: aid is not reaching Filipinos fast enough.

In the recently signed Bayanihan to Heal as One Act, President Rodrigo Duterte promised to give 18 million households a monthly “emergency subsidy” of at least P5,000 per household for two months. But government is still preparing the database that will be used to target these households. 

It’s not just workers and the poor who need help, but also businesses whose cash flows – and very survival – are in peril. But the Department of Finance (DOF) said aid for firms will “take [a] back seat.”

Economists say government needs as much as P300 billion to put the Philippine economy on life support. Duterte assured the people – in one of his late night addresses – that he has the money for that: “may pera ako”.

But does he really have the money? Where will it come from? And how exactly does he intend to use it?

Sources of funds

The good news is that government has lots of possible sources of emergency funds – from taxes to savings and loans.

As for taxes, the DOF admitted tax revenues might drop this year by over P91 billion, what with the Philippine economy put in forced hibernation. Minimal incomes beget minimal taxes. (READ: ‘Freezing’ the PH economy: Can we survive it?)

But Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III gave assurances previous tax reform programs like TRAIN were able to raise nearly P200 billion in revenues in the past two years.

Even as Dominguez said this, however, he implored taxpayers – at least those able to file and pay their taxes early – to help bankroll the government’s COVID-19 programs.

But the entire point of the government’s response to COVID-19 is to hand out economic aid. The last thing we want is for government to ask money from the people while their incomes and livelihoods disappear before their eyes.

As for savings, the Bayanihan law authorized Duterte to “reprogram, reallocate, and realign” savings from 2020 budget items to help communities and industries affected by COVID-19.

But in Duterte’s first weekly report last Monday, March 30, no such realignment has been done.

Meanwhile, the DOF claims there are P200 billion more that can be tapped from various accounts of the national government and GOCCs (government owned or controlled corporations).

As for loans, the DOF is already in talks with multilateral agencies like the World Bank, Asian Development Bank, and Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank to secure loans amounting to $1 billion-$2 billion.

In April the Treasury also expects to raise P190 billion from its sale of government securities – although demand from investors has been anemic of late.

By far the most significant funding source came from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), which purchased government securities worth P300 billion.

You can think of this as a zero-interest bridge loan that the Treasury must repay in 6 months. If spent prudently, this substantial sum could go a long way in our fight against COVID-19.

Uses of funds

More worrisome than the sources of funds are the uses of funds. 

There’s a lot of confusion right now on exactly how much Duterte plans to spend for his COVID-19 projects.

First, government announced on March 16 a P27.1 billion spending plan. But some observers said this sum was too small and a mere repackaging of existing budget items. Oddly, it was also mostly earmarked for tourism.

Second, Marikina Representative Stella Quimbo drafted a P108 billion“economic rescue plan” which allotted P50 billion for business loans and subsidies, P43 billion for tourism, and P15 billion for displaced workers. But Congress has yet to pass this or some other rescue package.

Third, Duterte’s allies in the House penciled P275 billion in their draft of the Bayanihan law (originally written by the Palace). But when interpellated, the bill’s sponsors couldn’t provide any breakdown for the huge sum they proposed.

Fourth, the Bayanihan law signed by Duterte on March 25 actually didn’t specify a total amount. Duterte later said he’d spend P200 billion, but that’s barely enough for his emergency subsidy which, by itself, will cost somewhere between P180 billion and P288 billion (plus P5.1 billion in administrative costs).

Lots of people on social media demand to see what Duterte has done with the supposed P275-billion COVID-19 budget. But the real amount…we don’t know. There’s no detailed spending plan yet.

Slow delivery of aid

In the meantime, more people are getting broke and hungry and desperate by the day.

The Bayanihan law did specify the amount of emergency subsidy people can get (see table below), but government is still drawing up the final list of beneficiaries. It will take weeks to distribute such aid to 18 million households. (A similar lag happened in the distribution of unconditional cash transfers of the 2017 TRAIN law.)

Businesses – especially smaller ones – are also beginning to fold. Delivery trucks are held up at checkpoints, container vans stranded at ports.

There’s also no specific financial assistance earmarked for firms in the Bayanihan law. Congress still needs to craft a separate bill for this purpose, but lawmakers may not convene again until May – by which time many businesses will already have gone bankrupt.

Finally, medical supplies such as personal protective equipment also remain unacceptably scarce as our frontliners continue to valiantly fight COVID-19.

Delays may yet worsen. On April 1 Duterte ordered that all donations to the national government or health department of medicines and medical equipment be directed to one central office: the Office of Civil Defense. But our frontliners need these supplies urgently, and this new regulation could only add another needless layer of bureaucracy in the process.

At least 17 doctors have already died due to the disease, yet Duterte even had to the gall to say they were “lucky” to have died for the country. Quite the opposite: they were unlucky.

If only government had prepared for and responded earlier to the epidemic, many of our frontliners need not have died.

Governance crisis

At the end of the day, money is not really the issue here. There should be more than enough sources of emergency funds.

The real problem is that entering the third week since the initial lockdown, Duterte has yet to show any concrete, detailed plan to allocate and distribute disaster relief for the tens of millions of Filipinos who need support ASAP. 

Worse, Duterte seems to be confusing the real enemy. In a surprise address on April 1, Duterte (presumably triggered by the riot at Sitio San Roque earlier that day) ordered his troops to shoot anyone who violates quarantine rules. 

Today we’re enduring two types of crises: one in public health, another in governance. Unsettlingly, I can’t tell which is worse now. – Rappler.com

The author is a PhD candidate and teaching fellow at the UP School of Economics. His views are independent of the views of his affiliations. Follow JC on Twitter (@jcpunongbayan) and Usapang Econ (usapangecon.com).

The following is a first-person account by Barangay Captain Filomena Cinco of Sampaloc, Manila, on the state of her community during the coronavirus crisis. 

This is Part 1 of a two-part series. Part 2, which you can read here, is an analysis of this account by social anthropologist Mary Racelis. 

At first, the community ignored the COVID-19 crisis. Despite messages from the government, they only began to take it seriously after hearing the relentless flood of news coming day and night from TV or radio stations, Youtube, Facebook, Instagram, and other media. This information barrage about COVID-19 made them aware at last of the need for self-quarantine, physical distancing, wearing a mask, avoiding crowded places, and taking other precautionary measures. Barangay officials and local association heads have reinforced the messages and promoted the appropriate behavior. 

No positive cases of COVID-19 have been reported, but as of March 20, there were already 3 persons under monitoring (PUM). PUM body temperatures and other symptoms are checked in the morning (8 am) and afternoon (2 pm). Our Barangay Health Emergency Response Team (BHERT) is well-coordinated by Dr. Gerardo Benitez of the M.F. Jhocson Health Center. Since the first 3 PUMs are getting better, they will not be tested but will remain under self-quarantine for 14 days. So far there are no deaths in our barangay.

We know what to do if a person comes out positive within the 14-day quarantine. The BHERT focal person will report that case to the Jhocson Health Center, which will transmit the information to the Health District IV Office and from there to the Manila Health Department. Trained medical people will then pick up the patient in an ambulance going to whichever hospital the LGU has designated as a testing center. Positive confirmation requires the LGU to report the case to the Department of Health for recording.

Meanwhile in the barangay, health team members, who are also local residents, talk to the affected family. Naturally they are worried and frightened. Since the team members know the family, they comfort them and explain honestly the procedures necessary for the patient’s recovery. The other family members are advised to self-quarantine for 14 days. That extends to  relatives and friends who may have had close contact with the infected person. PUMs can draw on the barangay services for help in purchasing food, bottled water, or other needed supplies. The barangay staff takes care of those requests, ensuring the items are delivered in timely fashion to the quarantined households. 

Looming poverty and hunger

In terms of COVID-19 surveillance, we are prepared. What is causing us real fear though are the many here who have lost their incomes and jobs because of the lockdown. About 90% of the people in Estero are out of work. People are very worried. Where will they get money to buy food, medicine, and other basic necessities? How are they going to pay their water and electricity bills, despite a one-month moratorium? (READ: [ANALYSIS] The Philippine gov't should get cash into the hands of the poor, now)

The community is responding though. Our people are sharing with the poorest families what little they have, like rice and viands. Some women walk around inside the community selling food to their neighbors. The better-off families hire the poorer ones to do household chores, like cleaning, washing and ironing. In addition, our community service program gives them a chance to run errands and in exchange receive rice and money.

Yet, those options provide very minimal income for their family. Some alumnae of Pamantasan Lungsod ng Maynila (PLM) came and commissioned our sewers to make improvised face shields and masks as well as surgical gowns. These young professionals will soon be donating their products to medical frontliners. The sewers are happy not only to be earning reasonable amounts but proud to be part of these young people’s noble efforts. Because of the close ties developed over the years through a strong People’s Organization (PO) and a responsive Barangay, Estero residents know they can rely on one another in good times and bad.

The city mayor, vice mayor, and councilors give frontline workers like us special attention with bottled water, drinks, bread and biscuits, noodles, food packs, medical kits, and health equipment. Private individuals and business establishments within our jurisdiction have brought similar donations. Mayor Isko Moreno contributed two thermal scanners. When the City of Manila declared a state of calamity, that allowed the barangay “in aid of legislation” to utilize our Disaster Recovery Funds to purchase and distribute rice as food subsidies.

Even before the Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ), the barangay distributed face masks, alcohol, sanitizer, and hand soap The City of Manila and its Department of Social Welfare have provided food packs and rice subsidies.  Our Lady of Loreto Parish and Kaya Natin Movement through Urban Poor Associates will be delivering food packs and rice. We have submitted our household master list to them so that they can move fast to procure and circulate the identified urgently needed goods. Let’s hope these reach our community the soonest possible. 

With all this what message would our community want to convey to the President?  

Their voices are loud and clear: President Duterte! Make sure that food packs, rice subsidies, or any help at all for our families reach us soon. We will not die from COVID-19 but from hunger! – Rappler.com

Filomena Cinco is Captain of Barangay 412 Zone 42 District IV, Sampaloc, Manila. 

The following is a reflection by social anthropologist Mary Racelis on a first-person account by Barangay Captain Filomena Cinco on the state of her community during the coronavirus crisis. 

This is Part 2 of a two-part series. You can read Part 1, Captain Cinco's account, here. 

It is clear that with almost military precision the word has gone down from the Department of Interior and Local Government that the impending health crisis must be dealt with as yet another War. Millions have been placed under lockdown for the good of all. The barangay officials mobilize to put a surveillance system in place and enforce discipline with police and military standing by. However, even as government expects the citizenry to listen to it, the opposite does not seem to apply – unless the Barangay Captain is someone like Kap Mena, as she is fondly called. 

Having organized the community’s People’s Organization many years ago, initially to resist distant relocation in favor of onsite upgrading or nearby relocation, she and the women leaders have seen the years of struggle bear fruit. Nagkakaisang Mamamayan ng Legarda has successfully negotiated with the national government for decent housing onsite and nearby. Its largely women members have become a powerful force in urban poor communities, speaking up for themselves in local and national government meetings.

It was Kap Mena’s accountability to the community while fulfilling her role as barangay official that highlighted her distinctive leadership. Urged to run for election as Barangay Captain, she did and won. She serves not only her informal settler neighbors but the entire constituency of low- to middle- to high-income families, business establishments, and colleges that make up her Sampaloc constituency. Filomena G. Cinco is now serving her third term. Her active, highly-organized community has been recognized by the City of Manila by twice awarding Barangay 412 the title of Most Outstanding Barangay (All Category-level) 2015-2016 and 2016-2017. People’s participation is Kap Mena’s strength and the community’s pride.

The Estero de San Miguel and its overflow population soon to move to the nearby Jesse M. Robredo Village close to Malacañang are known to be among the most dynamic in Metro Manila. In confronting national and local officials, their People’s Plan in hand, they have successfully won the concessions sought. In the War on Drugs, Kapitana Cinco and her Councilors made an agreement with the Station Commander that any tokhang raiders would have to go through her first. A late night notification would, therefore, alert her and her team to ring a bell arousing the community. Designated committees would accompany the police to the house of the alleged drug user. With people watching, no nanlaban episode occurred. Upon the arrest of the individual, the police leader would sign documents testifying that the suspect had left the barangay alive and in his custody. Kapitana Cinco and the community are proud to say that not a single EJK happened on their watch. (READ: 4 out of 5 Filipinos worry over extrajudicial killings – SWS)

She now reiterates her constituents’ cry that COVID-19, while meriting concern and preparation, is not really the peoples immediate worry. Rather, it is the widespread loss of daily incomes and jobs of thousands of informal sector earners resulting from the sudden lockdown. Tricycle and jeepney drivers now sit idly by their vehicles, parked unused in the alley. A wife selling vegetables in the Legarda market can no longer get there to bargain with her suki (favored customers). Gone from the sidewalks are the university belt students stopping to buy the cheap homemade bead bracelets or decorated combs an enterprising young Estero woman has made at home. Nor can her teenaged brother standing close by continue to ladle out fishball meriendas. All that is gone. Most have no savings. And they are asking, where will we get money to buy food? (READ: [OPINION] Let’s not forget the poor during the coronavirus pandemic)

Food packs are on their way, people are told. They dutifully get on a line that snakes back and forth in the community, longer than usual because of the one meter physical distancing order. The recently passed RA 11469 Bayan to Heal as One law offers hope, but will their P5,000-P8,000 emergency cash come soon enough to stave off hunger? Might the government flush with money push aside the timely and helpful assistance provided from the beginning by civil society partners? Should the 4Ps recipients, the poorest with many children, worry because of the rumors that they may not be eligible for the Bayan to Heal subsidies since they already receive in some cases as much as P2,000 a month?

In the meantime, must a mother borrow from the 5:6 lender or sell her small TV? Should her kumadre next door pawn the treasured earrings that she inherited from her grandmother? These anguished questions are raised again and again. How will they manage until the money arrives? How long must the money be made to last? And then what? When can they start working again? Will they still have jobs once the lockdown is lifted?

The issue, Kapitan Cinco makes clear, is not that people don’t believe COVID-19 is a serious threat. They know it is. So they are doing what government says they should to minimize its impact. She has relied on the trust built up around her leadership to make that happen. What appalls her constituents is how little recognition appeared to have been given beforehand to the impact of the lockdown on the urban poor. Why did the authorities not work out plans to protect the thousands of daily wage informal sector worker families with virtually no savings? Why doesn't the government even now organize the same kind of systematic priority attention to the economic threats facing the urban poor as it gives the impending health threat? They fear that when the surge of COVID-19 cases zooms upwards, their all-around vulnerability will disproportionately appear in the death statistics.  

With her long experience in community organizing and effective governance in urban poor communities, Barangay Kapitan Cinco believes that people can help weather the COVID-19 onslaught if the city and national authorities listen to them, welcome their participation in planning and implementation, and draw on their innate humanitarian values. They want officials to act quickly and effectively because as they have appealed to the President, “We will not die from COVID-19 but from hunger! – Rappler.com

Mary Racelis is a social anthropologist who teaches at the Ateneo de Manila University and the University of the Philippines. She is Board member of Urban Poor Associates.

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has a perverse message for health workers who have died of COVID-19 contracted in the country’s struggle against the novel coronavirus: Be grateful.

Duterte on March 31 dismissed reports of the rising number of doctors and nurses who have succumbed to the disease, stating that, “They are so lucky. They died for the country.”

“It would be an honor to die for your country, I assure you,” he added.

Duterte’s comments followed revelations on March 26 that at least 9 Philippine doctors have died of COVID-19 while working in hospital emergency rooms treating patients infected with the novel coronavirus. Hundreds of other Philippine doctors and nurses have gone into 14-day quarantine after exposure to patients who have tested positive for coronavirus.

The president’s comments are unsurprising in the context of his blatant disregard for the lives of Filipinos in his government’s ongoing war on drugs, that has resulted in the extrajudicial killings of an estimated more than 20,000 of his fellow citizens since 2016. That slaughter has prompted the  International Criminal Court to launch a preliminary examination into possible crimes against humanity linked to the anti-drug campaign. 

The Philippine Medical Association has expressed concern that, as in many countries, a national shortage of personal protective equipment (PPE) has put health workers at unusually high risk of contracting COVID-19. In the face of these constraints, the professional grouping has called for restricting hospital use of PPEs to only those health workers directly treating suspected or confirmed novel coronavirus infections. 

The shortages of PPEs for health workers, particularly N95 masks, during this pandemic is an international crisis. Shortages of surgical and N95 masks and equipment rationing for health workers have become the hallmark of inadequate government preparation and responses to the crisis worldwide. Those shortages are forcing some doctors and nurses to create homemade masks of dubious efficacy.

The deaths of health workers due to inadequate supplies of PPEs are national tragedies to be mourned, not patriotic sacrifices to be celebrated. Duterte and his government should be working around the clock to secure the PPEs that Philippine medical first responders require to protect them from the “honor” of dying of COVID-19. – Rappler.com

Phelim Kine is the Director of Research & Investigations at Physicians for Human Rights and the former deputy director of Asia division at Human Rights Watch.

The government has recently launched the "Social Amelioration Package" (SAP) as part of its response to the COVID-19 crisis. According to the Joint Memorandum on SAP, the aim of government’s social amelioration measures is to “mitigate the socio-economic impact of the COVID-19 health crisis and the Enhanced Community Quarantine guidelines.” 

Several government agencies were tasked to implement SAP, with the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) at the head. The government’s social amelioration shall include support to 18 million Filipinos who will be most affected by COVID-19. The target beneficiaries are senior citizens, persons with disabilities, pregnant women, solo parents, OFWs (distress at repatriated), indigenous people, homeless, farmers, fisherfolks, self-employed, informal settlers, and those under No Work-No Pay arrangements (e.g., drivers, househelp, construction workers, etc.). 

The target beneficiaries of SAP shall receive cash and in-kind assistance amounting to P5,000-8,000 per month for two months. This shall not be on top of existing social programs. So for instance, what the beneficiaries of Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) are receiving will form part of the P5,000-8,000, which will be augmented through other programs under the SAP. 

There are 3 challenges in the SAP that, if addressed, could help ensure that the program succeeds in helping Filipinos in distress during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Communication and information

According to DSWD, the first step in the implementation of the SAP is the distribution of the Social Amelioration Card (SAC). This will be done by local governments house-to-house. Families need to fill up the SAC and based on the information provided and in consideration of existing guidelines, the government will provide the corresponding assistance coursed through the LGUs. (READ: Cash aid for 18 million poor families in limbo as gov't works on database)

In short, the SAC will serve as a form of validation to check who will need amelioration during the COVID-19 crisis. (See here for DSWD information video) 

There are some gaps in the the information being disseminated by the government so far. It is not clear whether all families all over the country will sign the SAC or only targeted families in targeted areas. It is also not clear if it is the barangay, the municipal/city, or the provincial government that is ultimately responsible for ensuring that the SACs are distributed and collected. 

It is vague who will prepare and finalize the list of beneficiaries. It is a question if all those listed as target beneficiaries can qualify even if they cannot comply with the requirements since some of the requirements are hard to produce by people in crisis situations (e.g. employment certificate for self-employed, solo mother ID, etc.). 

We see as early as now the growing level of misinformation about the government’s social amelioration package. The vague, general, and fragmented information being provided by the government is causing distress among citizens and implementers on the ground. Key to the success of the program is communicating clearly and accurately the delivery mechanism and standards of the program, especially to ground implementers and beneficiaries.  

 “Squeezing the balloon” 

In accountability studies, there is a term called “squeezing the balloon,” referring to how government at a certain level passes on the blame/responsibility to the other levels of the government to evade accountability (see Jonathan Fox’s research on vertical integration).

With how the delivery mechanism of the social amelioration program of the government’s COVID-19 response is designed, this could happen – with the local governments at the disadvantage. 

In the delivery mechanism of SAP, LGUs will be delegated many tasks that are dependent on the central government’s work. If the listing and validation takes long, if the listing and corresponding benefits are wrong, if the national government does not download the funds and goods on time, if the benefits do not get to the intended beneficiaries, local governments will be forced to explain to their constituencies. Local governments will likely to bear the brunt of citizens if those qualified are not provided with corresponding assistance or those who are not qualified got access to services.

There are now growing reports of barangays and local governments complaining because people are expecting them to provide the P5,000-P8,000 assistance right this moment, while the central government has yet to provide the LGUs copies of the guidelines and documents. Furthermore, the central government has yet to guarantee if funds for this package is already available and whether and how much funds have already been disbursed. 

In this context, local governments too must demand from the central government on behalf of their constituencies. Local governments must demand clarity and specificity from the central government for one. They should demand the timely finalization of the list of beneficiaries. They should demand timely and exact cash, goods, and services to be downloaded. They should demand complete information and update on the SAP.

Unresponsive hotlines 

The government has set up hotlines to help in providing information about its programs under the COVID-19 response and as a mechanism for redress in case people have concerns and complaints.   

For inquiries on the SAP, the DSWD provides this hotline: (02) 8951-2803. 

DILG, on the other hand, has set up an Emergency Operation Center for COVID-19 with the following contact information: (02) 8876-3454 local 8806 to 8810; 0961-384-9272; 0927-422-6300; 0915-005-4535 and 0961-772-1668. 

DOLE also has its own hotline for its programs including those under SAP: 1349.   

The DILG has been the most vigorous in promoting its hotline. It’s been asking people to report local governments who are not performing their duties in providing emergency assistance and implementing social distancing measures. 

However, government hotlines as a mechanism for citizen redress has yet to be proven effective and responsive. Citizen use of government hotlines for critical issues, such as corruption and anomalies, remains wanting. For one, there is the fear of reprisal on the part of the complainants. It also remains a question whether government hotlines will be truly responsive, i.e., whether it will fully resolve complaints taking into account the feedback of the complainant on whether s/he is satisfied about the action taken or not. Using hotlines for harassment and to sow intrigue has also been a major challenge for government hotlines, including its lack of transparency and proactive disclosure due to privacy issues. 

Need for independent citizen accountability efforts 

Given the sheer volume of the assistance to be extended by the government and the amount of money involved, all citizens need to take part in ensuring that benefits and entitlements of citizens during this crisis situation get to the right beneficiaries at the right time following quality standards without anomalies.  

Mediating information between and among central government, local government, communities, and citizens would be needed. Ensuring that the hotlines are working and responsive would also be crucial. 

Given our country’s political-social history, position of authority and connection in the allocation of resources are likely to figure out more prominently at times of scarcity and crisis. We see this now in the COVID-19 testing. Government officials, the rich and well-connected are the ones prioritized in testing, provoking social media outrage that popularized the hashtags #NoToVIPTesting and #MassTestingNow. 

One way to check the powerful and have a reliable mechanism for redress for ordinary citizens is to have an independent grievance redress mechanism administered by independent groups or the political opposition. It can be the immediate corrective measure to an enduring fatal flaw of elitist democracy and corruption that may exacerbate the health crisis that is now endangering us all.  

Meanwhile, there are already ongoing citizen and civil society accountability initiatives that are commendable. Rappler is tracking DSWD assistance through its coverage. Bantay Bayan is a citizens’ initiative that aims to gather volunteers “to serve as watchdogs of local governments in the duration of the lockdown.” There are information platforms such as EndCov, developed by the minds behind Project NOAH, a well-recognized information platform that aids disaster planning and management. There is also Help from Home, that allows those at home to help frontliners and families at risk.  

On the part of Government Watch (G-Watch), we have started sharing government information about SAP and have started receiving and gathering complaints on non-functioning hotlines. 

We have also mapped citizen entitlements during the COVID-19 crisis. The mapping, currently on Google Drive, can be used by every citizen in checking whether the government is providing them with the entitlements and services guaranteed in the existing and new guidelines and policies governing the government’s COVID-19 response. 

There is a need for more similar citizens’ accountability efforts that address the challenges of communication and information, accountability gaps, and mechanisms for redress for ordinary citizens in the government’s social amelioration package and the overall response to COVID-19. The faster and better we are able to address the governance dimension of this health crisis, the better our chance of winning against the COVID-19 pandemic. – Rappler.com

Joy Aceron is convenor-director of G-Watch and research fellow-adviser at Accountability Research Center. 

For China, every day is April Fool’s Day. But the world is not buying. While it attempted to spin the story that the virus came from the US, and that it is now saving the world in supposedly helping countries stop the virus, China is only fooling the most gullible, like the Duterte government, because those of us who watched this calamity unfold from the very beginning know better. China is not fooling us, not even on April Fool’s Day.

More and more people around the world are calling the COVID-19 virus the “CCP” or “CPC” virus, or the Chinese Communist Party/Communist Party of China Virus. This is to remind people who are responsible for the pandemic that is now ravaging the whole globe, stopped the world economy, and threatens the future of humanity.  

Rightly so, because early in December 2019 when the new coronavirus was detected by Chinese doctors, Chinese Communist Party officials attempted a cover-up by silencing the doctors. This cover-up delayed the implementation of measures that would have stopped the spread of the virus. Because of this cover-up, millions of Chinese tourists, including Wuhan residents, went on their international vacations, spreading the virus to the whole world, but more savagely in countries with large Chinese expat populations, like Iran and Italy, and even the Philippines because of the Chinese POGOs in our midst. 

Now, China proclaims that it has defeated the virus, although there are great doubts as to the candidness of this claim. Experts say it is quite impossible for China to claim a zero incidence in a population of more than a billion Chinese merely days after the last recorded case of local transmission. At the same time, the number of the dead in Wuhan, Hubei, and the whole of China is being questioned, because Wuhan residents are reporting thousands of urns containing cremated remains handed over to family members, and witnesses are claiming Chinese crematoriums were working around the clock at the height of the epidemic in China. There are estimates of 40,000 dead in China alone from the CPC virus, not the 3,000 or more that the CPC claims. (READ: U.S. report accuses China of covering up coronavirus numbers)

To top everything off, with all hubris and hypocrisy, China is now presenting itself as the world’s savior against the CPC virus, sending out medical teams to Italy and even the Philippines and “donating” CPC virus testing kits that, not ironically, were returned by several countries, such as the Czech Republic, for being faulty. Here in the Philippines, our own DOH acts as spokesperson of the Chinese Embassy when it repeats the CPC line on the reliability of the testing kits, after initially stating that indeed the Chinese testing kits were known to produce “false negatives,” meaning, they were turning in negative results even if the subject is positive. If a false negative is dangerous in a pregnancy, what more in the case of the CPC virus, were subjects tested negative go about infecting other people in the belief that they are not contagious? (READ: China disowns defective coronavirus test kits in PH)

All of this is happening while China continues setting up new installations on its occupied reefs in the Spratly Islands, surrounding Pag-asa Island with its naval militia, and ramming Taiwanese coast guard vessels. This is the odiousness that is the CPC and its foreign policy. After causing the most disastrous world catastrophe since World War 2 by covering up the emergence of the CPC virus, resulting in a pandemic of apocalyptic proportions, and bringing the world economy to its greatest recession since the Great Depression of the 1930s, China still has the gall to bully and harass its neighbors while acting like the savior of the world, rather than admit its epic blunder of bringing the world to its knees.

Only fools will believe China and its supposed benevolence in sending help and assistance to the countries it has allowed to be ravaged by its own virus. China “the savior” is the fake China. The real China is the one out there in the Spratlys and the seas of Taiwan bullying Philippine and Taiwanese forces even while both countries are still reeling from the pandemic China has unleashed on the world. This is the real face of China, or at least of its communist party. (READ: Satellite image shows Chinese military plane on Kagitingan Reef)

The world will not forget at the end of this all who were responsible for this global catastrophe. As we have said about the Duterte government in its role in allowing the spread of the virus in the Philippines after refusing to close Philippine ports to China as early as January – that the job of saving the country from the CPC virus cannot be left to those who failed to stop it earlier – the world will not allow China to continue posturing as its savior, after China single-handedly caused the worst pandemic in world history since the Spanish Influenza of 1918. Like the rest of the world, we Filipinos are not fools to be bought out of this Chinese-caused calamity with inferior testing kits and Chinese doctors. 

A Beijing student, with the same hubris of the CPC and toeing its propaganda line, told BBC that China has defeated the virus, and now she wants to see how the rest of the world deals with it. The world will deal with the CPC virus as it sees fit, no thanks to China, but it will never forget who spread it to the whole world in the first place. In due time, the international community will pierce the veil of CPC hypocrisy, and serve China its just desserts for causing this global calamity. – Rappler.com

Senator Leila de Lima, a fierce Duterte critic, has been detained in a facility at the Philippine National Police headquarters for nearly 3 years over what she calls trumped-up drug charges.

 It’s a first in world history: an online Holy Week for millions of people, even in Vatican City, due to the coronavirus pandemic. Rappler presents a series of reflections to help you, our reader, enter the spirit of Holy Week even in quarantine.

Father Antonio Moreno, SJ, delivered the following Lenten homily on March 23, in an online Mass livestreamed by Radyo Katipunan. The homily is based on the First Reading from Isaiah 65:17-21 and the Gospel from John 4:43-54. Rappler is republishing this with his permission in observance of Holy Week 2020.

Today’s readings speak about hope, not sheer optimism; not positive thinking, but hope.

In the First Reading from the Prophet Isaiah, it says: “Thus says the Lord: Lo, I am about to create new heavens and a new earth; the things of the past shall not be remembered or come to mind. Instead there shall be rejoicing and happiness in what I create; for I create Jerusalem to be a joy and its people to be a delight; I will rejoice in Jerusalem and exult in my people.” The promise “to create new heavens and a new earth” only makes sense if we have faith in the Lord. Our hope is not based on our analysis or positive thinking or human efforts alone, but on faith in the Lord like what the royal official in the Gospel did: he believed in the healing power of the Lord and his son was healed.  

The foretelling of “new heavens and a new earth” is not an empty promise. Our faith testifies that it will indeed come – not in our terms, not in our time, but in God’s terms, in God’s time. When we pray the “Our Father,” we say: “Your Kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” It is not our kingdom, but God’s. It is not our will, but God’s. Sometimes without our knowing it, God visits us, and God’s reign is already in our midst. But since we have some expectations about how God should arrive, we miss the point.

This pandemic, however dreadful, is not the final word in our faith journey. The final word is life, new heavens and a new earth. Our hope founded on faith in the Lord assures us that death will not be the final word in this battle. We take consolation in this. Let us not wallow in desperation. Or worse, let us not think that this pandemic is about God’s wrath because of our stubbornness. Some people think this is God’s punishment so that the stubborn will be converted. Calamities, destructions, evils, and deaths did not disappear during the time of Jesus and even after his resurrection. Our God is loving, and in the midst of all these difficulties, God’s love is constant. God remains so near to us. God has not abandoned us. God did not eliminate pain and suffering, instead God gave us hope.

Interestingly enough, in these times of crisis, there are some positive energies of solidarity, of sharing of resources, of rich and poor coming together. I know some rich people sharing their resources to feed the poor. I know some hotels and school properties that are used as places of quarantine and as safe havens for the frontliners. Jollibee is giving away P100 million ($1.97 million) worth of food for the frontliners. Generous donations are given away to help the poor and jobless at this time. All is not doom and gloom.

There are glimpses of God’s presence in our lives in moments of suffering and pain. It may not always be the way we want God to intervene, but there is still hope, and God is here with us and has not abandoned his promise to create “new heavens and a new earth.” And we are invited to play our part; not to add more to the panic that there is, not to share with others fake and unverified news, not to be negative and desperate; but to bear the pain and suffering, find creative ways to feed the hungry and equip our frontliners and be in solidarity with our world.

Good Friday may have come too soon for us, but in hope we will experience Easter. – Rappler.com

Father Antonio Moreno, SJ, is president of the Jesuit Conference of Asia Pacific. He is former provincial superior of the Philippine Jesuits and former president of Ateneo de Zamboanga University.

From Day 1, ang mindset natin ay nasa hospital ang labanan, na ang kaligtasan nating lahat ay nakasalalay sa ating health care frontliners. Tama naman, kasi health emergency ang COVID-19 higit sa anuman. Pero ang ganitong pananaw ay uubra lang kung wala pang malawakang community transmission. As of this writing, maliban sa 17 local government untis (LGUs) sa Metro Manila, 50 out of 81 provinces natin ay may persons under monitoring na. Konting kembot pa, beso dito, beso doon, at buong 'Pinas na ang may "veerus." 'Pag nangyari 'yun, hindi na kakayanin ng ating health care system na iligtas tayong lahat. 

Kaya, sa puntong ito, kailangan na nating mag-iba ng mindset. Matagal nang lumabas ng San Lazaro ang tunay na giyera. Ang front line ng laban ay wala na sa mga hospital; ang unang bugso ng depensa ay nasa ating mga barangay: sa tarangkahan ng ating mga bahay, sa gitna ng mga umpukan, sa dulo ng dila ng mga pasaway, sa mga kanto’t singit ng bawat eskenita, plaza, basketball court, at palengkeng trip nating tambayan. 

Hindi na ito laban ng DDS vs Dilawan, hindi na ito laban ni Duque at DOH, hindi na ito laban lang ng health care workers natin sa hospital. TAYO NA ANG NASA FRONT LINE. Tayo na ang nasa first line of defense upang labanan ang pagkalat ng COVID. 'Pag natalo tayo rito, 'pag tayo mismong dapat naka-home quarantine ay labas nang labas pa rin ng bahay maski walang dahilan, game over na. Sa reunion mo next year, kung meron man, baka kalahati na lang ang attendance. 

Ang pananaw na ito ay nauna nang nilabas ng ilang mga doktor natin. Kasama na dito si Dr Daniel Luchangco, emergency doctor sa Makati Medical Center, na nagsabi sa kanyang FB post nung March 25 na “WE ARE FIGHTING ON A LOSING BATTLEFRONT” kung tayo ay nakatutok lang sa pangangailangan ng mga hospital.

Ang sabi niya: “[T]he healthcare system is ALREADY overwhelmed now with CoViD patient…. The best way to help the hospitals is to STEM THE TIDE OF NEW PEOPLE GETTING SICK and needing medical attention. The hospitals should be the last resort. WE CANNOT WIN THE BATTLE IN THE HOSPITALS. It should be fought on the streets, where you guys are.”

May iba pang doktor na nagpahayag ng ganitong saloobin. Si Dr Iris Thiele Isip Tan, doktor at propesor sa College of Medicine sa UP Manila, ganun din ang panawagan sa FB: ang ituring ang mga hospital bilang last line of defense. 

Bago rito, nauna nang nilinaw ni Dr Lei Camiling-Alfonso, dating Doctor to the Barrio at kasalukuyang health system specialist, na hindi hospital ang dapat ituring na front liner. Sabi niya sa FB post niya nung March 22, “[Our] first line of defense should be COMMUNITIES [to] stop the virus from spreading.” Sa aspektong ito, ayon kay Dr Alfonso, unsung heroes natin ang rural health units sa mga probinsiya. (READ: [OPINION] Putting the 'community' back in the enhanced community quarantine)

Importante ang pagbabagong ito ng mindset sa laban natin sa COVID-19. Hangga’t iniisip natin na ang laban ay nasa hospital, malayo sa ating mga bahay, malayo sa ating mga mahal sa buhay, madaling maging kampante. Hangga’t iniisip natin na merong mga nurse at doktor na lumalaban para sa atin, madaling sumuway sa quarantine. 

Ang masaklap, kung magtatagal ang krisis – at malamang magtatagal ito, sang-ayon sa projections ng mga ekspertong taga-UP na nakatrabaho ko nitong nagdaang dalawang linggo – hindi kakayanin ng ating health care system ang dami ng mga magkakasakit. Siyam na doktor na natin ang namatay, at mas marami pa ang persons under investigation (PUIs), kundi man confirmed na. Ngayon pa lang, umatras na ang ilan sa malalaking hospital sa Metro Manila. Kung tuluy-tuloy ang pasok ng mga pasyente sa hospital, paano na? 

Sa atin nakasalalay ang hindi lubusang pagpasok ng virus sa ating mga barangay. Nakadepende ito kung gaano tayo kaseryoso sa pagku-quarantine. Huwag na nating hintaying mag-declare pa si Presidente Duterte ng Enriched Enhanced Community Quarantine bago tayo sumunod. 

Kung hindi maiiwasang lumabas ng sariling bakuran, exercise strict physical distancing. Maintain one meter distance from other people at iwasan munang makipag-tsika-tsika sa iba. 'Wag masyadong feeling close. Sa panahon ngayon, bayani ang suplado’t suplada. 

Pero, siyempre, as much as possible, manatili sa loob ng bahay. Maglaba, magluto, maghugas ng pinggan, magtahi ng facemask, mag-Tiktok, magbilang ng oras. Kung medyo makapal ang apog mo, puwedeng tumambay ka na lang talaga, humilata sa sahig at matulog maghapon. Ngayon ka lang puwedeng maging batugan at may silbi pa rin sa bayan. 

Kung tutuusin, hindi mahirap na kalaban ang COVID-19 dahil madali itong patayin. Hindi kagaya ng ibang virus, ang SARS-COV-2 ay sabon lang ang katapat. (Puwede ring alcohol, 'yung hindi naka-ban.) Bilang frontliner, simple lang ang hinihingi sa atin: ugaliing maghugas ng kamay at i-disinfect ang mga bagay na galing sa labas ng bahay. Iwasan ding hawakan ang mata, ilong, at tenga – hindi mo 'yan ikapopogi o ikagaganda. 

Needless to say, kritikal ang role ng mga LGU at barangay officials para maging effective ang role ng mga mamamayan bilang frontliners. Hindi natin mapapasunod ang mga tao sa pasinghal na utos, pananakot ng kulong, o pananakit. (Nemen, 'yung iba nga diyan, PUI na, pakalat-kalat pa rin sa hospital at Malakanyang.) 

Mahalagang hindi ituring na kalaban ang taumbayan. Imbes na ibilad sa araw, bigyan ng pagkain, bigyan ng ayudang pinansiyal, o di kaya’y ipag-community service para gumawa ng mask o anumang pangangailangan. Ang mga walang mauuwian at matutulugan, kanlungin at bigyan ng oportunidad na makatulong. 

At higit sa lahat, higit sa batuta at armas, i-mobilize ang barangay health workers at social workers upang mabawasan ang pangamba ng mga tao. Tandaan: hindi lang sikmura ang kailangang kumalma sa yugtong ito ng ating giyera.

Ngayong may community transmission na sa iba’t ibang lugar, panahon na upang baguhin natin ang ating pagtingin sa problema. We cannot solve our problems by using the same kind of mindset that created them in the first place. Hindi ako maysabi n’yan – si Einstein. – Rappler.com

Kristoffer Berse, PhD, is associate professor at the University of the Philippines-National
College of Public Administration and Governance and concurrent director for
research and creative work of the UP Resilience Institute.

The past couple of days witnessed a flurry of events, many of which are legal in character – from the summons of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to Pasig Mayor Vico Sotto to the statement by Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission (PACC) Commissioner Manuelito Luna that Vice President Leni Robredo should be probed for “illegal solicitations” and for allegedly competing with the national government’s efforts to address the COVID-19 outbreak.

In this article, we will discuss the constitutional basics in a pandemic – things that both a first year law student and the government should know – and discuss why the actions being taken by the government to suppress dissenters are unconstitutional. 

Mayor Sotto’s summons

Mayor Vico Sotto was summoned on Wednesday, April 1, by the NBI to appear on April 7 and explain his supposed violation of Republic Act No. 11469, or the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act, which includes a suspension of mass transport as part of the enhanced community quarantine guidelines.

Before the law’s passage on March 24, Mayor Sotto ordered the limited mobilization of tricycles in order to ferry health workers and patients with urgent needs to and from hospitals; he, however, immediately retracted this order when the national government turned down his request to allow tricycles to continue to operate for the sake of the frontliners.

This rejection by the national government and Mayor Vico’s subsequent recall of his order, which took place on March 18, transpired days before the actual passage of the law.

Any first year law student is familiar with the phrase “Nullum crimen nulla poena sine lege,” which is usually taught during the first week of criminal law class. Translated, it means “There is no crime when there is no law punishing the same.” In this case, Mayor Vico’s order for the limited mobilization of tricycles and his subsequent recall took place almost a week before it was deemed prohibited by the law. Without a prohibition in the law at the time, Mayor Vico’s order was neither illegal nor criminal.

Moreover, first law students are also taught the principle of ex post facto laws, or laws with retroactive effect or force. Section 22, Article III of the 1987 Constitution provides that “No ex post facto law xxx shall be enacted,” which means that it is unconstitutional for the government to criminalize an act that was legal when it was committed.

President Duterte’s 'shoot to kill' order

In the evening of the same day, President Duterte held an impromptu address ordering the police and military to kill quarantine violators and “trouble-makers,” a warning which came after residents of San Roque, Quezon City held a protest to air out their concerns that they were not receiving aid from the local government. 21 of these protesters were eventually arrested.

This statement – as with his previous statements regarding shooting to kill – is unconstitutional. Section 1, Article III of the 1987 Constitution states: “No person shall be denied the right to life, liberty, or property without the due process of law, nor shall any person be denied the equal protection of the laws.” Without due process in the form of a fair proceeding where both sides are given the opportunity to air out their concerns, the right of a person to his life, liberty, and property reigns supreme, and is guaranteed by the Bill of Rights.

Netizens’ dissent

After the address, ordinary citizens understandably took to social media to voice out their dissent, and the early hours of April 2, 2020 witnessed the rise in the number of tweets and posts pertaining to the same.

In the morning of April 2, human rights lawyer Chel Diokno posted that he accepted a case from one of the netizens who received a subpoena from the NBI, after having posted online criticism regarding the way the administration was handling the COVID-19 crisis.

The person was invited to "shed light on alleged violation of Art. 154 of the Revised Penal Code - unlawful use of means of publication and unlawful utterances in connection with your publicly posted article concerning an alleged misused (sic) of government funds." The subpoena also provided that non-attendance will be penalized.

Although the NBI has the power to issue a subpoena for the appearance of any person for investigation or the production of documents through its officers from the ranks of regional director to director (Sec. 4(b), RA No. 10867), it has no contempt powers or the power to punish people for noncompliance. The functions of the NBI are merely investigatory in nature, and it has no judicial or quasi-judicial power. As such, it cannot adjudicate, arbitrate, resolve, settle, or render awards in disputes between contending parties, and has no power to cite people in contempt, much less order their arrest.

The Constitution also guarantees free expression and that includes the right to express one’s opinion on social media.

VP Leni’s 'illegal solicitation'

Even the Vice President is brought to the forefront. The PACC told the NBI to probe VP Robredo for allegedly competing with the national government’s efforts against the COVID-19 outbreak, including the provision of free shuttle services and dorms, and distribution of personal protective equipment (PPEs), among others.

Firstly, the money that is used by the Office of the Vice President came from private donors, both groups and individuals, and are duly accounted for. They are also donated to a private group – the Kaya Natin Movement for Good Governance. This means that the P40-million amount used to procure equipment and shuttle services did not come from the national treasury and is not being spent by the government. Thus, the probe is patently unfounded and without legal basis.

Secondly, one must be reminded that the Vice President is an impeachable official and no cases filed against her will prosper unless she is impeached first. Helping fellow Filipinos is, of course, not an impeachable offense, nor is the NBI the proper venue to lodge such complaint, according to Sections 2 and 3, Article XI of the 1987 Constitution.

PACC Commissioner Greco Belgica has since said that the call by Commissioner Luna to have VP Leni probed was his personal opinion and did not reflect the views of the body.

We hope it ends there as this is a big distraction from what the country needs to do to address the challenges of the pandemic. They are unhelpful actions taken by government officials, actions that cause disunity and which are clearly illegal and unconstitutional. – Rappler.com

Joy Reyes is a collaborator of Professor Tony La Viña. She graduated from the University of the Philippines College of Law.

It’s a first in world history: an online Holy Week for millions of people, even in Vatican City, due to the coronavirus pandemic. Rappler presents a series of reflections to help you, our reader, enter the spirit of Holy Week even in quarantine.

Bishop Pablo Virgilio David delivered the following homily in the online Mass of the Diocese of Caloocan on March 29, the 5th Sunday of Lent. Rappler is republishing this with his permission in observance of Holy Week 2020.

I don’t know if you have noticed it, those of you who may have found more time to read the Bible during this lockdown; John tells his stories differently. He does not supply all the details. He leaves some of it to your imagination.

For example, he does not tell you why it is Martha who comes out to welcome Jesus in their home at Bethany and why Mary chooses to stay home. It doesn’t sound like her; it is usually Mary who is excited to welcome Jesus and engage him in a spirited conversation while her sister Martha stays in the kitchen to do all the cooking. Remember that story in Chapter 10 of Saint Luke?  

So how come Mary does not seem so eager to meet Jesus when she is told that he has arrived? You know my guess? I think she is sulking. In Tagalog we call it PAGTATAMPO.Masama kasi ang loob niya. She makes him understand that she resents his delayed coming. Why only now? I am sure Jesus immediately noted the absence of Mary when he was met by Martha. Where is your sister? It is only then that Martha comes back to the house to pull her sister out and tell her to welcome him. She does it with a heavy heart and with heavy feet. She could not even keep herself from expressing her honest feeling. Like her sister, she could be frank with Jesus. She says, “If only you were here, my brother would not have died.” What a painful declaration – you were not here...where were you when we needed you?  

There are definitely a lot of times in our lives when we feel like saying this to God. Where are you? Like during these times that we are waging a global war against an enemy we do not see, a pandemic. I wonder if you felt it in the reflection of Pope Francis on March 27 at Saint Peter’s Square, looking desolate and walking alone in an empty square that used to be always full of people. There was a part in his message when he said, “One of the things that hurts us and our families most when we hear it said is: ‘Do you not care about me?’ It is a phrase that wounds and unleashes storms in our hearts. It would have shaken Jesus, too.”

Imagine being the wife of a frontliner doctor who contracts the disease. Imagine your husband being intubated in the ICU and you cannot even attend to him even if you are also a doctor, because you also got infected and you have a special child, a son who is waiting for you at home? Imagine what it is like to learn that your husband was asking for a priest to give him the last rites and his wish could not be granted because nobody was allowed access to the ICU for COVID patients? Imagine him dying alone and being cremated within 8 hours and your family does not even have the opportunity to grieve his loss?  

It is certainly during times like these that we feel like expressing to God in our prayer a lament full of reproaches – addressed to a God whose presence, whose care and love we begin to doubt. Lord, where are you? Why have you forsaken us? What did we do to deserve this?

Like I said, John is such an interesting storyteller. He makes you fill in the gaps in his narration.  He will actually tell the reader the reason why Jesus could not be there. His life was in danger. He was a wanted man in Judea; he could get arrested and executed if he showed up. In fact the disciples warn him about this danger when he decides to go to Bethany. But he goes anyway.  

We are supposed to know the reason why he couldn’t come. But Martha and Mary do not know this. And Jesus does not waste time trying to defend himself before the sisters’ rebuke and lament. He does not say, “If you only knew the risk that I am now taking just to be here with you.” What does he say? Nothing. He goes with them in silence and says, “Where have you buried him?”  And when she weeps, he weeps too.

This Holy Week, we will surely be weeping.  We will be missing the palms of Palm Sunday, the Jesus images mounted on carriages for the procession, the senakulo, the Salubong. We will be feeling like it’s not Holy Week, like Jesus is not with us.  

I know, sometimes we think God is just up there in heaven watching us down here, uncaring, indifferent. I remember many years ago receiving a postcard from a friend with a paraphrasing of the Lord’s Prayer written on it, in French. It says, “Our Father in Heaven, stay there in your heaven! And we, we will just stay here in our own misery on earth, where life can sometimes be nice anyway.” It is a lament written by an agnostic writer named Jacques Prévert.  

Laments, they say, are an important component of our faith. Almost half of the Psalms of the Bible are made of laments.  It does not have to be “Praise the Lord” all the time. It’s okay not to be okay sometimes. We’re taught never to pretend in our prayer, to dare to express our honest feelings to God, the way Martha and Mary did. And God would be silent. But he will make his presence felt. He is not up there in heaven watching us indifferently. He is with us, weeping with us, suffering and dying with us, assuring us that death cannot have the final say if we hold on to him, even in the dark, even in the midst of temptation to despair, to fall apart and break into pieces.  

He teaches us to have faith, to hope, because of only one thing: our God is a God of love, and his love is our only guarantee of eternity. His love can never be defeated by death. He will see us through this. He will call out our names the way he called Lazarus to come out of the tomb, to awaken us from the slumber of death.  

For the past few weeks now, our homes have turned into virtual tombs during this time of our quarantine. Our streets have turned empty, no public transportation, business establishments are closed, our voices have been silenced. We have been shrouded by fear, bound, as it were, by the terror and anxiety of getting sick with the coronavirus, or causing our loved ones to get sick, especially our elderly and the vulnerable ones among us. Those of us who have contracted the disease are isolated and made to feel like they are lepers.  Some of them need help and cannot get it, some need a ventilator and the equipment is not available.  

But how can we even say he is not here? He has dared to be with us even if it could cost him his life. He is here, in our frontliners who put their lives on the line, in the doctors and nurses and all other caregivers, in the soldiers and barangay officials who patrol our streets, in the volunteers who bring food to the hungry, in those who dare to open their doors to the frontliners and the homeless, those who continue to produce food and make it available in the markets, in the stores, those who dare to be out there so that we could be allowed to stay home and defeat this unseen enemy.  

Saint Augustine tells us that when we are tempted to despair, it is then that we must stubbornly assert our faith and declare, “We are Easter people, and our song is Alleluia!” Our story is never truly a story of salvation if it does not end with redemption. The story of redemption never ends on the cross or in the tomb. It breaks out of the tomb. Our faith teaches us to believe that our stories will have a happy ending. The raising of Lazarus is a mere preview of the real happy ending: the resurrection of our suffering and dying God. 

And so we must have the courage to declare with hope: We are Christians. We believe in happy endings. If it’s not yet happy, then it’s not yet the end. – Rappler.com

Bishop Pablo Virgilio David heads the Diocese of Caloocan. A renowned Bible scholar, he is also vice-president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines.

We should not lose sight of the myriad, positive – and often overlooked or forgotten – ways in which our day-to-day lives have already assimilated high-tech innovations in ways big and small.

From crowdfunding to cryptocurrencies and ridesharing to online marketplaces for hotels and homestays, technology is challenging if not yet transforming large parts of established economies and industries. We should not fear this.

That power of technology to disrupt certainly has been one of the focus areas of ongoing discussions around the world from Los Angeles to London, and Singapore to Abu Dhabi – even in the age of coronavirus.

This past February, the Milken Institute – a non-profit, non-partisan economic think tank with which I am affiliated – brought together in the U.A.E. a curated group of interdisciplinary thought leaders and decision-makers to discuss, develop and deploy solutions to some of the world’s pressing challenges.

The two-day Milken Institute Middle East and Africa Summit, Feb. 11-12, in Abu Dhabi, made clear the benefits of technology in areas ranging from access to capital to medical innovations. 

Yet, resistance to technological change has long been with us.   

From the crash of a Boeing 737 MAX airplane in Indonesia in 2018 and Ethiopia in 2019, blamed in part on the plane’s high-tech design and software shortcomings, to the on-going COVID-19 pandemic driven in part by increased air connectivity in our globalized world, setbacks and unintended consequences stemming from technological advancements are fueling new levels of skepticism. There is persistent fear about what a technology-enabled future might bring, from job losses and the deaths of industries to drone attacks and cyber-crimes.

Modern media, including Hollywood and social media platforms, have amplified such stories and fears, intentionally or not. Yet, menacing or malfunctioning machines and software only tell one side of the story.

Whether it is in the clothes we wear, the way we light our homes, or the way we keep our houses clean, technology has begun to revolutionize basic everyday products and services as tech assumes an ever-more pervasive role in our daily lives.

This everyday technology revolution has also added opportunity for businesses and entrepreneurs, including in Southeast Asia and around the world.  In the past, consumers might well have expected the most basic of household products to be relatively inexpensive, partly because their functionality, and so their value, was so limited. 

But with advancements – indeed, with technology now embedded in consumer goods’ very make-up – groundbreaking new commercial avenues and opportunities have opened up.

The clothes we wear

Take something as basic as clothing. A few years ago, a classic cotton T-shirt cost a few dollars, or less, and was worn by many for all occasions: as an undershirt at work, as casual weekend-wear, or while at the gym or working at a labour-intensive job. 

But now, technological innovations even in a basic T-shirt are seemingly boundless. Manufacturers today use new technology to reduce odour-causing microbes. Sun-protective clothing is produced from specially-designed or treated fabric and rated for its level of protection from the sun’s harmful ultraviolet (UV) rays. 

There are fabric blends that wick away sweat and are fast-drying. Other shirts offer stretch-mesh panels that lead to easier ventilation. There are compression fits for athletes.  And that does not take account of all the hugely popular trademarked fabrics that have upended the lucrative sporting-apparel-meets-casualwear industry.

Under Armour’s HeatGear, Nike’s DRI-Fit, Reebok’s ACTIVchill to name just a few. Indeed, the world has come a very long way from the days when Americans would spray Scotchguard, from 3M, onto their clothes to waterproof them.

The lights we use

Or consider the way we light our homes.  Old-fashioned, incandescent electric lightbulbs are notoriously energy inefficient, so much so that many countries have banned them outright. 

Light-emitting diode (LED) bulbs have swept through the market in recent years, consuming up to 90 percent less power than the old incandescent bulbs and drastically lowering energy costs. They also last much (much) longer.

Lights, like T-shirts, now do high-tech backflips as well. 

They dim or intensify with the touch of a button, often remotely controlled by a smartphone or via scheduled timers. Some new bulbs employ technology known as “geofencing,” which links the bulb to the GPS in a smartphone and triggers it to turn on when the user is nearby.  And individual bulbs can now shine in many a colour of the rainbow, giving unique accents to a home.

The way we clean

Then there is the way we clean our clothes and our homes. Technology is pointing new ways forward away from the use of traditional – and often harsh – chemical cleaners. I have seen this first-hand through my work serving on the advisory board of Equator Pure Nature, a Thailand-based “clean-tech” company that produces, markets, and sells a line of natural, environment-friendly, biodegradable household cleaning products under the brand name Pipper Standard.

Their products are made by fermenting pineapple – somewhat akin to the process by which bacteria help create yogurt – and the result is a natural cleaning fluid full of bio-surfactants, and powerful enzymes. And critically: the solution cleans comparably to chemical cleaners.

The company’s founder and CEO Peter Wainman, who started the company after suffering from a debilitating allergic reaction to a chemical fabric softener, told the MIT Technology Review in February last year: “If we decrease unnecessary chemical exposure, particularly in the home, we may have a positive impact on allergy rates. A healthy environment starts at home.”

Indeed, traditional chemical-based cleaners, from laundry detergents to liquid hand soaps, among others, have come under renewed scrutiny amidst a global consumer movement toward environmentally-friendly, non-toxic and non-allergenic, natural products.

Just as technology has raised new worries, we need only look to the past to see those same old fears but also how evolving technology has provided solutions and better lives.  Achieving sustainable trade growth, robust capital markets, financial inclusion, food and job security, and gender parity will remain the challenges of today even when we get past the present pandemic.

And far from something to fear, technology is already saving us. 

It is not just respirators, and innovative medical treatments. We need only look at some of the simplest things – the clothes we wear, the lights we use and how we clean our homes – to see how in our tech-enabled, everyday lives there already exists the power of disruption by technology for good. – Rappler.com

Based in Bangkok, Curtis S. Chin, a former U.S. Ambassador to the Asian Development Bank, is managing director of advisory firm RiverPeak Group, LLC.  Follow him on Twitter at @CurtisSChin.

I've seen posts from friends saying that we're currently in a post-apocalyptic movie or series of sorts. Instead of dodging zombies to avoid being eaten alive, we avoid people for fear of contracting COVID-19. Have you seen that meme about being a "tribute" in the Hunger Games when you do a grocery run? It's actually pretty accurate (and not at all funny) when you go out to get essential supplies.

I am able to say this because I was tasked to do so yesterday. It was my first time to go out since the lockdown started, and honestly, the experience was surreal and quite overwhelming – another reminder of the things we've taken for granted when we weren't in this predicament. 

My day started early. Mom woke me up at 8 am; she told me that I'd encounter long lines at the grocery and pharmacy. After smoking and drinking coffee, I started to prepare the needed precautionary measures (face mask, eye goggles, surgical gloves, hand sanitizer, alcohol spray, hoodie, and track pants). I also had to consider the return trip so I left clothes and a towel at our tiny, out-in-the-open garage so I could take a quick bath before I entered the house again. To add, I also soaked a rag in alcohol so that I could wipe the grocery items that I'd be bringing back.  

Tedious is an understatement, but I'm not complaining. I am grateful that we have money to buy the things that we need, as I know that some of our countrymen do not have the means to do so. As much as I'd like to help financially, I don't have a job right now so the most that I could do is be encouraging and supportive to those who are struggling mentally.

Before I digress, here are a few of my observations from my "adventure." 

1. Lines, lines, lines

What my mom said was true. I left at 8:30 am and I got back at 12:30 pm. That's 4 hours just to go to 3 establishments that are a few blocks away from our house (Southstar Drugstore, Mercury Drug, and Robinsons Easymart). By my estimate, the time I spent falling in line was 2.5 hours. The remaining 1.5 hours was for walking to and fro and for buying goods. (READ: [OPINION] Notes from a supermarket on the last day of freedom)

2. Rampant discrimation

I was #30 at the Mercury Drug line when Kuya #50 coughed repeatedly. He was wearing a face mask like all of us there but most of the people near him eyed him suspiciously. Manang #49 moved away and loudly said that he shouldn't be out ("inuubo ka na nga, lumabas ka pa"). Ate #48 and Manong #47 did the same thing and told him to leave the line. No one even thought that it could be a simple throat itch; most automatically assumed that he was sick. 

3. Out-of-place sense of entitlement

I was near the entrace of Mercury Drug when all of the sudden, a woman got out of a car and went straight to the guard. She didn't look like a senior citizen. At most, she was probably 40-45 years old. She told manong guard that she had a lot of points on her Suki Card so she had to be allowed to go in immediately. When that argument didn't work, she then said that she was a friend of a barangay official. Those of us who heard her were fuming mad at that point. It was a good thing that she wasn't allowed inside as the guard bravely told her to fall in line. Humiliated (as we all clapped at what manong guard did), she left after yelling expletives.  

4. Physical distancing inside stores is a joke

Yes, the lines outside give you a sense that physical distancing is being practiced, but that isn't the case when you enter the establishment. Even when they've limited the number of people who can enter the store, you can still see shoppers crowding certain areas (the canned goods and meat sections). The only way to keep safe is for you to move as fast as you can, avoiding people (in any way possible) as you get the stuff that you need.  

If you think about it, this lockdown brings the best and worst out of people. I've seen leaders act with humility and I've encountered normal citizens who prefer to display their egos. This is sad as some haven't realized that we're all in this together. We may come from different walks of life but our goal remains the same.

I know that these are challenging times but surely, we can do better. My advice when you go out to do a grocery run: leave whatever sense of entitlement you have at home. Have a grateful heart at all times as we do our best to keep ourselves and our families safe. – Rappler.com

Maw Tuazon is a concerned Filipino citizen who took up Political Science in UP Diliman. In her spare time, she writes fiction and real-life strories while she plots to rule the universe.

For a moment there – even if it felt like a lengthy purgatorial sentence – much of the global population lived in what came to be known as the "post-truth" world. “Alternative facts” and “fake news” have acquired a state of quasi-reality, thanks to enough people saying enough lies enough times, that they were eventually taken for truth. It was the wild, wild west of spin. (READ: Disinformation producers get paid P30M for 3-month campaigns – expert)

This world favored sound byte over science, and was hostile to fact-checking and expertise. It drowned out credible voices in multiple ways: maliciously by powerful actors with vested interests; ignorantly by our individual blind spots; and systematically by socio-political institutions that left large swathes of the population undereducated or disenfranchised. 

This was the kind of world where leaders could lie – documented, sometimes multiple times a day – without repercussions. Here, sensationalist talking heads had larger political platforms than journalists. A couple of hours on Google made you a better expert on vaccines than doctors too, apparently. This was the world of paid trolls and paid hacks, peddling opinions that somehow became more valuable than sound scientific and economic recommendations on pandemics, climate change, labor rights, or universal healthcare. (READ: How young doctors are fighting online misinformation on novel coronavirus)

When fabrications were caught, penalties were slim and apologies almost none. Why bother? Yesterday’s lie can be overshadowed by today’s. But a Ponzi scheme, pyramid of lies can only last as long as a crisis is small enough to be contained away from large parts of the population. The coronavirus pandemic is not that type of crisis. It is showing us the world we live in is a hackable construct and that some powerful actors have indeed, already hijacked it.

Certain Chinese authorities tried to silence virus whistleblowers, but controlling the narrative meant nothing once the sick started filling the hospitals and the bodies started to pile up. Pro-government trolls in the Philippines tried to package calls for closed borders as xenophobia, but then the number of cases started to rise. President Duterte cursed and threatened to (figuratively, one hopes) slap the virus, until it slapped him back with an epidemic. President Trump tried to underplay the situation and overplay his preparedness, but now the world's biggest outbreak is on his lap and people are discussing the merits of risking the lives of grandparents for the sake of saving the economy.

The truth – that this was a serious situation demanding serious people and serious solutions – tried knocking on each of their doors. China had whistleblowers from Wuhan. The Philippines, the United States, and many other countries were not only warned by health experts, they could practically watch the example of countries like Italy suffer in real time. They had weeks to prepare. But instead of listening, these governments silenced. Instead of focusing on the problem, they distracted themselves and the public. They spun narratives and tossed around accusations and threats.  

But half-truths, as the philosophers say, are whole lies. Fake news, as common sense once went, is actually fiction. Alternative facts are not facts. Truth tried knocking politely, until it had to tear down the doors and could no longer be denied. Now it’s clear: you can’t contain a virus by containing your critics. You can’t control an epidemic by controlling the narrative. There is no such thing as revisionism in real-time.

From an ivory tower, one can call the virus an avenger of truth. 

Deny the facts on the ground, silence the witnesses, accuse the media and opposition, bring out a dog and pony show as much as you want. But when billions around the globe are stuck at home, when their loved ones die off, when the hospital beds and emergency rooms are full, when the medicine, the equipment, the food, and god forbid the TP run out, when the jobs and the money dry up, when crime rises out of desperation...the constructed realities of macho threats, magic cures, and other false claims revert to what they were all along: a big nothing. (READ: Half of humanity in virus confinement)

But that is romanticizing things. The brutal fact is this – the virus isn't vindictive. It's indiscriminate. It won't go after only the purveyor of lies or those who had willingly or unwillingly subscribed to them. As if life was one big joke, after all that our political beliefs have polarized us, we are all finally forced into one boat together. 

One could call the virus cruel in that way but that is inaccurate too. The virus isn't cruel, it's mindless. It has no intention. It is plain, neutral, reality. We cannot deny it exists, nor can we deny the other facts it has since exposed: there are plans – and there are people – who are working to solve it. It is also becoming clear there are people who are either useless, or making things worse. 

It's a brutal collective lesson, and it will cost us for a long time. And yet if we do not get our act together and start valuing knowledge, expertise and plain competence again, it will only be the first salvo of truth bombs that will hit us. Vaccinations. Climate change. A flawed healthcare system, systemic inequality...the chickens will come home to roost for these too.

The era that should follow post-truth politics is, simply, truth. 

The world as we know it has stopped. For us to survive to see the other side, all the nauseating spin must stop too. Governments need to quit it with the nonsense. People are done with drama. Everyone should just listen to the proper experts, keep their heads down, and get to real, honest work. – Rappler.com

Isabel Lacson-Estrada is a freelance writer with a Master of Science Degree in Global Affairs from New York Univeristy. She is a stay-at-home mom and is underqualified but lucky to have the best job in the world. 

Noong Marso 31 nang gabi, o ka-hatinggabi, nakatanggap pa kami ng huling hirit sa #DionaTweet mula kay Twitter user Corona Virus Disease (COVID)-19: 

the virus and the Monstrance
duel to death in a dance
to give you another chance.

Kung hindi ako nagkakamali, 5 ang kaniyang ipinadala.

At ito ang pinakaeksakto sa pagpatak ng 12 midnight.

Kumbaga, itong dionang ito ang pinakahuling lahok na pasok na pasok para sa nakaraang timpalak nitong Marso.

Tuldok na ito kung tutuusin.

Subalit gagawin natin itong tutuldok.

Bakit?

Sapagkat, ngayong Abril, na Pambansang Buwan ng Panitikan, ay ating uumpisahan ang isa pang hamon.

Gaya ng ipinangako namin sa inyo, may isa pang paligsahan.

Pasusulatin naman namin kayo ng kuwento.

Sa dinarami-rami ng mga nangyayari sa loob at labas ng bahay nating sawi, tiyak hindi tayo mauubusan.

Dahil nga sa nagbabantang Extended bilang karugtong ng Extreme na at Enhanced pang Community Quarantine, pihadong makakasulat kayo kahit ng isa pang E – epiko!

Ngunit wala muna tayong tugma.

At binibilang na talinghaga.

Magpahinga tayo sa pagtula.

Teka muna.

Ako yata ang di makawala.

Kaya, magkuwento lamang kayo nang magkuwento.

Sa buong buwan ng Abril, inaanyayahan namin kayong sumulat ng inyong karanasang maligaya o malungkot o masalimuot o kung ano pa.

I-post ito sa Facebook at i-tag ang Rappler at ang Foundation AWIT.

Iikot ito sa COVID-19, gamit ang 19 salita, susulat kayo ng daglî.

ANO ANG DAGLI?

Ang daglî, ayon sa Sagisag Kultura ng Filipinas, ay isang kuwento na mabilisang isinusulat at inilalabas.

Mas madalas kaysa hindi, ang daglî noong una ay “mapagpatawa” at “nagpapahayag ng matapang na pamumunáng pampolitika.”

Maihahambing ito ng mga Tagalog sa pasingáw sa isang pagsasalaysay lamang tungkol sa pag-ibig.

Para kay Fausto Galauran, ang daglî ay isang “bukas na liham” ng pagtatapat para sa isang paraluman o pagbanggit ng isang pangyayari o tagpo para sa sinumang nilalangit.

Alam ba ninyong ang itinuturing na makabuluhang daglî ay isinulat ng isang Bisaya sa wikang Sebwano?

Pinamagatan itong “Maming” at lumabas sa Ang Suga noong Hulyo 16, 1901.

At ang awtor?

Walang iba kundi ang lolo ni Vic Sotto.

O di-kaya’y lolo sa tuhod ni Mayor Vico Sotto.

Magkatokayo sila ni Tito Sotto na ang buong pangalan ay Vicente Sotto III.

Ang aking tinutukoy ay si Vicente Sotto, na hindi lamang isang politiko kundi isa ring peryodista na mas kinikilala bilang “Ama ng Wika at Panitikang Sebwano.” 

Sa kabilang banda, sumulat din ng daglî si Deogracias Rosario, na itinuturing namang “Ama ng Maikling Kuwentong Tagalog.”

Hindi iilan ang mga daglîng isinulat sa Espanyol at Ingles.

Maitutumbas ito sa rápidá, instantanéa, o rafága ng Espanya.

O maitatapat ito sa flash o sudden fiction ng Estados Unidos.

Subalit, kung susuriing maigi, maigigiit ang mga pagkakaiba.

Isaalang-alang natin ang depinisyon o deskripsiyon ni  Alejandro G. Abadilla (AGA), na napansing ang mga daglî ay didaktiko o “nangangaral” o nagsesermon.

Samantala, ang flash o sudden fiction ay magkaiba rin subalit, para kina Robert Shapard at James Thomas, editor ng Flash Fiction Forward: 80 Very Short Stories (2006) at New Sudden Fiction: Short-Short Stories from America And Beyond, ang dalawang ito ay kapuwa nagpapagitaw o tumatawag ng panagano o mood at nanggigising ng isip o intelek – habang ipinapakilala tayo sa mga taong interesante o inilalarawan sa kakaiba ngunit nauunawaang pangyayari.

Ano’t ano man, ang karaniwan sa lahat ay ang pagtutuon ng pansin hindi sa haba kundi sa lalim o liwanag ng bisyon sa pagpapahalaga sa pagiging tao o pagpapakatao.

Tanda lamang na kaya o may kapangyarihan ang daglî na umayon, o sumang-ayon, o sumabay o sumakay sa panahon.

Dagsa ang daglî sa mga babasahin noong sinakop ang Filipinas ng mga  Amerikano.

Kung kaya, masasabing ang daglî ay naging daluyan ng pang-uuyam o pangungutya, lalo noong tayo ay nasa ilalim ng mapanupil na pamahalaan.

Sa pagpapalit ng kolonya – mula Espanyol patungong Amerikano – isa sa mga uring pampanitikang pinili ng mga manunulat ay ang daglî.

Noong 1902, ang mga isinulat ni Lope K. Santos na daglî ay ihinalintulad ni AGA sa sketches.

Basahin ang Muling Pagsilang ni Santos – na unang lumabas sa pahayagang Tagalog – upang maintindihan ang katangian ng mga namayaning daglî.

Oo, nandoon ang anggulo ng pagsinta, pero hindi maiwasan ang panig ng panunuligsa.

BAKIT NAMAN ANG IKLI?

Ani AGA: “Ang naging pagtangkilik ng mga Pilipino sa mga daglî ay hindi lang dahil sa panlalamig nila sa mahahabang babasahin, kundi dahil sa naging angkop sa pangangailangan ng mga tao noon na makatipid ng panahon at gugol sa mga babasahing umaaliw na’y nagangaral pa rin.”

Saksi ang Dekada ’90 sa pagbangon at pagbagsak ng mga di-mahahabang prosa.

Oras na para ibalik sila.

Ngayon pang nagkakasya tayo sa kuwadro ng cellular phone, iPad, laptop, at iba pang gadget na grabe sa liit pero lintik sa pagiging high tech.

Mula noon hanggang ngayon, diyaryo ang isinilang, lumaki, at tumanda sa ganitong kalagayan.

Sanay na sanay ang mga peryodistang isilid ang mga titik sa em at en.

Inabot ko pa nga ang pagbibilang ng mga salita at parirala para sumakto sa ulo ng balita.

At bilang manunulat, ako ang isa sa naging tagapagtaguyod ng Panitikang Panakip-butas!

Nariyan din ang mga magasing nagsilang sa mga minadaling ginto na pagtagal ay inaampon ng mga aklat o antolohiya ng iba’t ibang literatura, pangkampus o panrehiyon o pambansa o pandaigdig man ang mga ito.

Noong 2003, ang kuwentistang Filipina na isinilang sa Estados Unidos na si Noelle de Jesus ang nakaisip bumuo ng antolohiya ng Fast Food Fiction Short Short Stories To Go na inilimbag muli noong 2014 at inilabas ang Singapore edition noong 2016.

Isang kasamahan namin noon sa College Editors Guild of the Philippines (CEGP), si Roland Tolentino, ay isa mga kuwentistang nagsimula bilang editor sa pahayagang pampaaralan. Kaya, hindi kataka-taka nang maglabas siya ng ng 100 daglî mula sa mga balita: Sakit sa Kalingkingan: 100 Dagli sa Edad ng Krisis (2005). Pagkaraan, naglabas siya ng kaniyang pag-aaral dito: Weder-weder Lang! Ang Materialidad ng Panahon at Espasyo ng Dagli (2007) at  Ang Dagling Tagalog 1903-1936.

Halos magkasabay silang naglathala ni Alwin Aguirre ng kaniyang Semi-kalbo at iba pang kwento (2005), na may pagka-sci-fi gayong ito pa rin ay pantao at hindi pang-robot na sipat sa estado sa lipunan.

Sinundan din ito ng isa pang eksperimental na daglî ni Eros Atalia, na nasa kontrobersiyal niyang Taguan-Pung: Koleksyon ng Dagling Kathang Di-Pambata at Manwal ng mga Napapagal Kopi Teybol Dedbol Buk (2006) ukol sa karanasan ng mga bata ngunit di-pambata. Inilimbag ito ng University of Santo Tomas Publishing House na diumano’y pinakiusapan siya na palitan ang titulo nito sa halip na sensitibong “Manwal ng Pagpapatiwakal” at pumayag naman ang awtor nang buong pagpapakumbaba. Pagkalipas ng 12 taon, muling maglalabas siya ng Taguan-Pung (2014) na tututok na sa ugaling Filipino at usaping panlipunan. 

Mabunga sa daglî ang gitna ng unang dekada ng bagong milenyum.

Marahil dahil nga sa ang pormang pampanitikang ito ay pang-milenyal.

Isa na rito si Loree Cruz-Mante sa kaniyang Biyaheng FX Round Trips to Pinoy Life (2006), na paglalarawan sa karaniwang buhay-pasahero ng mga pampublikong sasakyan.

Sa sobrang sigla ng siglong ito, nagpasiya si Vicente Garcia Groyon III na mangumbinsi ng iba pa at mangolekta. Ito ang naging Mga Kuwentong Paspasan (2007), na tila mas naimpluwensiyan ng flash o sudden fiction kaysa daglî.

Katunayan, kapanabayan ito ng isa pa sa Ingles na may titulong Very Short Stories for Harried Readers at ng nabanggit kong koleksiyon nina Shapard at Thomas.

Pinabulaanan ni Abdon Balde Jr na siya ay hanggang nobela na lamang at ang daglî ay para sa mga milenyal. Hindi naging madali ang pamimili niya ng pamagat dahil nagtanong-tanong muna siya kung ano dapat ang tawag sa “panibagong porma ng maikling prosa.” Kapagdaka ang sagot ko ay “Kagyat” at karaka ring tumugon ang iba pa.

Pero si Mike Coroza ang nagwagi sa kaniyang “KISLAP” o  Kuwentong Isang Iglap. 

Kaya nagbunsod ng 100 Kislap (2011) si Balde, na tiniyak na ang bawat kuwento niya ay may tig-150 salita, walang labis, walang kulang.

Rumesbak na naman si Atalia nang magpakitang-gilas siya sa kaniyang Wag Lang Di Makaraos: 100 Dagli (Mga kwentong Pasaway, Paaway at Pamatay). Ang Pambansang Alagad ng Sining na si Bienvenido Lumbera ang unang pumuna’t pumuri sa kaniya: “Kung lilingunin ang kasaysayan ng daglî bilang anyong pampanitikan, makikitang bago ang hipo ni Eros sa anyo noong namalasak sa mga dyaryo mga unang taon ng ika-20 siglo.”

Kung paramihan lang din naman ng danas, di magpapatalo ang overseas Filipino worker (OFW) na si Jack Alvarez sa kaniyang Ang Autobiografia ng Ibang Lady Gaga (2012).  Sa unang tingin, kinuwestiyon ito ni Reuel Molina Aguila kung daglî nga ba ang mga ito o hindi, ngunit, sa bandang huli, kinumbinsi niya ang sarili na ang mga ito ay daglî at hindi lamang “maiikling personal/malikhaing sanaysay.”

Isa sa mga kauna-unahang tesis tungkol sa kaniyang koleksiyon ng daglî ay isinulat ni Hazel Karyl R. Madanguit para sa kaniyang BA Malikhaing Pagsulat sa Filipino sa Unibersidad ng Pilipinas Diliman. Tinawag niyang Sa Pagmamadali, ito ay kalipunan ng 14 na daglî hinggil sa mga taong nabuhay sa pagmamadali dahil minamadali na sumasalamin sa suliraning panlipunan.

Para naman sa kaniyang MA Malikhaing Pagsulat, isinulat ni Melencio Fernando Jr ang tesis niyangKumpisal: Kalipunan ng mga Dagling Di-Banal. Tungkol ito sa kasalukuyang kalagayan ng  Katolisismo sa Filipinas. Dating sekretaryo ng pari, siya ay lumikha ng mga daglî ukol sa kanila at mga nangyayari sa loob ng kumbento at simbahan. Nakatakda sana siya na magdepensa ngayon.

Kaya lamang…

***

MGA HALIMBAWA NG DAGLING MAY 19 SALITA:

1. 

Paulit-ulit kong pinakinggan ang “All By Myself,”“Right Here Waiting,” “Survivor,” at “The Climb.” Umiyak akong mag-isa.

2.

Madaling dumistans’ya kung ikaw ay nakatira sa isang subdibisyon, may sariling kotse, at hawak ang sariling oras sa trabaho.

3.

Gusto kong panoorin ang bayaning isinilang sa Wuhan, China. Pero may pumigil sa buong mundo na manood ng “Mulan.”

4.

Naglaro ng ML. Nagbasa ng libro. Nakinig ng podcast. Naglaro ng ML. Nagbasa ng libro. Nakinig ng podcast. Naglaro…

5.

Pinakinggan ko ang tinig ng Diyos. Wala akong marinig. Para Siyang sinisipon at umuubo. Pa’no na kaya ako, Lord?

6.

“Ano ang lason?” Tanong ko sa matanda. Sagot niya: “Lahat ng bagay nang sobra sa kailangan mo.” Nagkatinginan kami.

7.

Sa Mayo. Magtsitsismisan daw sina Buwan, Venus, at Jupiter. Di nila alam. Mukha silang smiley sa Kalawakan. Pagtatawanan tayo.

8.

“Gawa ka ng gamot sa COVID-19.” Sagot ng scientist: “Bigyan mo muna ako ng suweldo ni LeBron James.”

9.

“Ina, ikaw ang puso ng tahanan natin.” Ngayon ko lang ito nasabi. Sa ipinapagawa kong lapida para sa kaniya.

10.

My God! I had been so busy with all these timekillers that I forget one most important calling. Writing. 

Dali na! 

Daglî na!

Paki-tag ang https://www.facebook.com/rapplerdotcom/ at https://www.facebook.com/Foundation.AWIT/. 

– Rappler.com 

Sa ngalan ng siyensiya’t sining, tumutulong si Vim Nadera sa mga maykanser, may AIDS, nagdodroga, “comfort women,” batang kalye, inabuso, naipit sa mga kalamidad na likha’t likas, at mga nagdadalamhati. Ilan sa kaniyang mga proyekto ay Textanaga, Panitikabataan, panitikan.com.ph, Pistang Panitik, Pagpupugay sa mga Pambansang Alagad ng Sining. Conspiwriters’ Tuesdays, O.M.G. (Open Mic Gig), Kaakuhan, Word Jam, at Akdang Buhay. Itinanag nila ng kaniyang kabiyak ang Foundation AWIT (Advancing Wellness, Instruction, and Talents) Inc.  

If the first casualty in war is truth, as the saying goes, the second may very well be something the entire world values highly right now: quality health care.

Families fleeing conflict or currently in its crosshairs know that medical assistance is a rare and precious privilege in war zones. Amid the terror of bombs and bullets, a functioning medical facility is a life-saving oasis, but it’s a near certainty medical staff will be overworked and short on supplies.

This lack of medical care is what makes COVID-19’s inexorable march into conflict zones so terrifying: it’s a dramatic threat to life in places where people are often seen as nameless, faceless others. But my organization helps and gets to know real people, real families who now lie before a violent storm.

As president of the International Committee of the Red Cross, I’ve come to know the very hard scenes that war victims must confront. We feed the severely malnourished. We listen to survivors of sexual assault. We patch together splintered families, and we sew up grotesque war wounds.

Listen carefully

In short, we see the world at its worst, which is why I want world leaders and governments to listen carefully: I am scared.

I am scared because COVID is overwhelming the medical capacities of Western nations’ advanced medical infrastructure.

I am scared for when COVID reaches the world’s under-resourced prisons, where already fragile health and low medical capacity will combine for widespread sickness.

I am scared for when COVID reaches the world’s cramped refugee camps and precarious provisional shelters, where social distancing is impossible and medical resources scant.

The children, parents, and especially grandparents found there will soon be left to fend for themselves against COVID-19, and that is why I’m urging governments and humanitarian groups like mine to do as much as they can to help these most vulnerable people.

This has been a necessity for a long time. Today, helping those least able to defend themselves from disease is a moral and political imperative even – or especially – during the crippling societal and economic effects of a global health crisis. We can and must reduce the suffering this disease will cause those least able to cope.

The Rand Corporation found in a 2016 study that Afghanistan, Haiti, Yemen and 22 countries in Africa make up the 25 most-vulnerable countries to infectious disease outbreaks. The majority of the 10 most vulnerable countries were conflict zones.

Reorientation

The ICRC is currently carrying out a major reorientation in our assistance activities, adapting our existing work to today’s viral reality. In the medical facilitates we support such as in Syria, Somalia and Iraq, we are increasing stocks of essential supplies and reinforcing infection prevention and control measures.

In detention facilities in more than 50 countries, the ICRC works with the authorities to strengthen medical screenings of and prevention measures for new arrivals, visitors, guards and delivery personnel. We also support disinfection measures and distribute hygiene materials. We have seen such measures prevent the spread of cholera and Ebola into places of detention in Guinea, Liberia and the Democratic Republic of Congo. We must do the same with COVID-19. 

These are critical steps right now. But here’s another critical step: The ICRC and others must continue to carry out non-COVID-19 work. For example, the hospitals we support in South Sudan have received more than 145 patients with gunshots wounds in recent weeks. They must be helped, too.  

The sad reality is that for people in conflict, COVID-19 may just be one additional mortal threat. It’s for a good reason the UN Secretary-General has called for a global ceasefire; humanitarian actors need all possible space to respond to the present pandemic.

Our double response to conflict and COVID-19 is extra difficult because of the vital measures taken to contain the pandemic. Travel restrictions prevent the collection of humanitarian assistance and block our teams from entering countries or delivering supplies. We’ll work to overcome these challenges, but we ask decision-makers to make exceptions for health and humanitarian work.

If helping is a moral imperative, governments and other armed actors in conflict theaters must protect a neutral and impartial humanitarian space, not overburden it with regulations and restrictions; everyone must protect human dignity, not marginalize, exclude and stigmatize.

I’m scared that COVID’s assault on the world’s most vulnerable will be vicious. Time is already short, but we must work together now to reduce whatever upcoming suffering that we can.

Governments, belligerents and authorities must change their behavior. Viruses know no borders; the impact from a lack of response and resources for detainees and refugees may haunt the entire world.– Rappler.com 

Peter Maurer is president of the International Committee of the Red Cross. He is based in Geneva.

The directive to stay at home is meant to prevent the coronavirus from spreading and infecting others, but for those for whom home is not a safe place, this leaves them trapped. For many who live with their abuser, home is the most dangerous place to be.

Places that offered a temporary escape like the office, school, and the neighborhood coffee shop are closed. As many survivors of violence know, shame and fear of retaliation make going to the authorities a last resort. But even physically going to the barangay to file a complaint or file for a protection order is difficult. In some areas, movement is limited by the issuance of one quarantine pass per family – often the head of the family who may also be the abuser. (READ: Fears of domestic violence rise as millions confined over virus)

Violence comes in many forms. Physical violence may be the most obvious but there are other forms of violence that are just as real and damaging, like financial abuse or harassment – when the perpetrator withholds money from you or constantly asks you for money – and psychological abuse. In chat groups, women report feeling helpless about partners who defy quarantine and social distancing rules to go drinking with their friends. Their partners dismiss their fears about catching coronavirus and infecting their young children. 

Several studies have shown that domestic and family violence increases during times of disaster and national emergencies. I will write more about this later, but while I still have you with me, here are places you can go to for help. 

Aleng Pulis Hotline: 0919 777 7377

The Aleng Pulis Hotline continues to receive calls 24/7. I spoke to Aleng Pulis Diane who told me that calls will always be answered and they can help by referring the client to their nearest barangay or police station for assistance – or by listening. Their services are restricted by the quarantine and the need to keep everyone safe, but Aleng Pulis Diane said, “We are here to receive calls para makining, mapagaan ang loob ng kliyente, at para matulungan siya i-refer sa kanyang barangay.” (We’re here to listen, to ease our client’s burden, and refer her to the nearest barangay.)

To be clear, our current laws give our local government units the mandate of dealing with violence against women and children (VAWC) cases. They may be inundated with efforts related to the COVID-19 response, but the barangay and the local police should always have someone who has been trained to handle VAWC and gender-based violence on call. 

On a side note, as I was working on this column, I got a call from a community health worker in Pasay. One of the residents was physically abused by her uncle. She is no longer a minor and she is not the partner of the abuser, so this will be a case of physical injury. She tried to file a complaint with the barangay captain. He said he talked to the police but he was told that they are currenlty not handling such cases. She was advised to wait until after the community quarantine was lifted. 

Unacceptable. It’s not as if you can tell an abuser to wait until the lockdown is lifted before assaulting you. 

I called Aleng Pulis Diane and she confirmed that regular police services must remain operational. I then linked her with the community worker. Aleng Pulis Diane is helping us by coordinating directly with the nearest Pasay Police Station. 

Likhaan Center for Women’s Health 

The Likhaan Center for Women’s Health continues to operate with a skeleton force of community health workers. According to executive director Dr. Junice Melgar, the Likhaan Clinics in Vitas-Tondo, San Andres, Navotas-Malabon, Apelo Cruz-Pasay, and Giporlos Eastern Samar continue to provide urgently needed reproductive health services, including care for VAWC victims.

VAWC services include psychosocial support, treatment of physical injuries, prevention of sexually transmitted infections (STI) and HIV, and unintended pregnancy. 

In the Vitas and San Andres clinics, co-managed with Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF or Doctors Without Borders) Likhaan provides Post Exposure Prophylaxis or PEP – antiretroviral medicines meant to be taken after potential exposure to HIV to prevent becoming infected. 

Likhaan clinic staff are also ready to assist in referring the complainant to other needed services. 

“We can also help with referral for barangay protection and additional medical, legal, and socio-economic support as necessary and with the women’s consent,” said Melgar. 

As the local government response has been focused on limiting movement, quarantine protocols may change from time to time. Check the Likhaan Facebook page for changes in clinic hours and services. 

Philippine General Hospital Women’s Desk 

The PGH Women’s Desk handles the medical needs of victims of gender-based violence. However, since the PGH is now a designated COVID-19 hospital, they now offer their counseling services through phone, email, and their Facebook page. 

“There is definitely a continued need for gender-based violence services. The pressures of getting by from day to day plus being confined to small spaces for prolonged periods of time are a perfect storm for the escalation of violence,” said Rizza Pamintuan, who manages the PGH Women’s Desk. 

“We have adapted our services to our current circumstances and are working within certain limitations, but we commit to listening. We hope this can help make women feel less alone,” said Pamintuan. 

Lunas Collective

Recognizing the need and the lack of services, other citizens have also come forward offering to help. 

Lunas Collective is a group of volunteers providing support services for survivors of gender-based violence or those who may have concerns about birth control. You can reach out to Lunas Collective through their Facebook page for support.

Rio Otara, a registered social worker with experience in handling gender-based violence cases, is ready to offer free online counseling. You can message her through Facebook here. 

Strengthening anti-VAWC responses 

On her Facebook page, women’s rights advocate and VAWC expert Sylvia Claudio reminded local and national government to look after the needs of domestic and family violence victims. 

“During pandemics, you don’t only die from COVID-19, you may also die from the authorities’ neglect to take care of the basic needs of people. More funding for anti-VAWC programs, please.”

Existing anti-VAWC laws are not complemented with mass education campaigns or services. The Philippine Commission on Women, the premiere government agency with the mandate to uphold women’s rights, has a list of VAW hotlines, but none of these phone numbers have been updated to reflect the minimum 8-digit numbers mandated by the National Telecommunications Commission. 

Their page also lists women’s shelters where women can go to for help. However, some of these institutions have been closed for many years. 

––

In the Philippines, one in four women has experienced spousal abuse. 

Disasters, war, and crisis situations – including pandemics – heighten the triggers of violence. Emergencies instantly strip us of food and income security, the very things that we need to survive. They bring anxiety and uncertainty. The additional stressors of being cooped up in tight space – a small shanty or compact condominium unit – increase the risk of violence.

Many studies confirm this link. 

Specific to COVID-19, in China, domestic violence reportedly doubled when the cities were put under lockdown in late January. “According to our statistics, 90% of the causes of violence were related to COVID-19,” Wan Fei, founder of an anti-domestic violence non-profit in central Hubei, said in an interview with China-based magazine Sixth Tone.

Anti-VAWC provisons have been incorporated into our disaster response frameworks.

“We have learned much from our many natural disasters. There's a spike of gender-based violence cases during humantarian crises. That is why it is important that the gender-based violence response incorporated in our government frameworks for calamity response be actively implemented in the time of COVID-19 and all other future crises,” said  women’s rights advocate and lawyer Claire Padilla

Padilla was part of a team that trained government offices nationwide on how to incorporate gender-based violence responses into their workflow and how to handle such cases with sensitivity. 

As government and citizen efforts are focused on the COVID response, adaptive interventions to assist those in abusive relationships like those listed have emerged. But some of these are temporary and will only be in place during the quarantine period. The government must step in and consider long-term interventions to address domestic violence in the different scenarios under a pandemic emergency. (Read COVID-18: A Gender Lens by the United Nations Population Fund to see how pandemics affect women.)

Do you know of other VAW prevention initiatives or domestic violence hotlines in your locality? Tell us about them. – Rappler.com

Ana P. Santos writes about sexual health rights, sexuality and gender for Rappler. She is the 2014 Miel Fellow under the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting and a 2018 Senior Atlantic Fellow for Health Equity in Southeast Asia.Follow her on Twitter at @iamAnaSantos and on Facebook at @SexandSensibilities.com

Dahil wala akong bagahe ng pang-araw-araw na suliranin sa karaniwang trabaho ko noong pre-COVID-19 quarantine, ngayong panahon sana masarap maging productive. If you know what I mean. 

Nasa loob lang ako ng aking bahay dito sa lalawigan, on a semi-lockdown. May internet connectivity kahit aandap-andap, may maayos na daloy ng kuryente at, dahil nasa Lucban, malamig na tubig. May malapit na tindahan ng sariwang gulay at iba pang makakain dahil narito lang din malapit sa amin ang kabukiran at ang mga local delicacy producers na nagpasikat sa Lucban – makasalanang sarap ng longganisa at broas, halimbawa.  

Kasama ko ang aking pamilya, na hindi rin lumalabas ng bahay. Mahigpit ang tagubilin ko dahil ako ang head of the family (though God knows asawa ko talaga ito) by virtue of sa akin nakapangalan ang inkjet-printed, number-coded quarantine pass na bigay ni Kapitan. Ginagamit ko naman isa o dalawang beses isang linggo ang quarantine pass na ito para bumili sa bayan ng pangangailangang wala sa tindahan ng gulay na malapit sa amin. 

Narito sa bahay ang karamihan sa aking mga libro kaya nasa akin ang lahat ng pagkakataon para magbasa. Narito, ginagamit ko ngayon, ang aking hindi-pa-bayad na laptop sa pagta-type. Salamat na lang at may isang buwang reprieve sa mga utang sa credit card.  

Narito ako. Ligtas. May oras. Magaan ang buhay kung hindi rin lang makababalita sa nangyayaring trahedya ng COVID-19 kapag nagbubukas ng internet at telebisyon. Kasama na rin sa trahedya ang mga ancillary tragedies, tulad ng marahas na pagdakip sa mga walang makain at pabago-bagong statement hinggil sa pagpapatupad ng kapangyarihan sa likod ng maparikalang Bayanihan Heal As One Act. 

Nasa akin lahat ang pagkakataon para maging produktibo. Nagagawa ko naman, palagay ko. Nakagagawa ako ng video para sa aking mga mag-aaral sa kolehiyo at para sa ilang mga kaibigang itinuturing akong propesor sa social media; nababasa ko kahit paano ang mga isinumiteng papel ng aking estudyante; nakakapag-check, nakakapagbigay ng feedback. Sinisikap kong magbasa ng mga gusto kong basahing libro na pinagbibili ko noon pa. At, kahit pa hindi ko ito dapat i-announce by virtue of Mateo 6:3, nakakapagpaabot ng mumunting tulong kung kanino man iyon. 

Kahit nasa loob ng bahay, sa tulong ng YouTube, nakakapag-ehersisyo ako. Nakakapagpapawis bilang paghahanda sa mga pagkakataong mamimili ako ng mahahalagang kailangan sa bayan. Lakad lang kasi, tatlong kilometro, at ang kalahati ng ruta ay paahon. Bawal ang pampasaherong sasakyan. At wala akong sariling sasakyan. Humanda si Daniel Matsunaga sa aking quarantine-sculpted body pagkatapos ng lahat ng ito. 

Parang produktibo na ako ng lagay na iyan. Mistulang may nagagawa, may natatapos at may inaambisyong masimulang proyekto. Pero kahit gaano ko tangkaing maging focused sa pagiging produktibo, hindi ko maialis ang hindi matatawarang stress at anxiety dahil sa pangamba ng pagkalat ng salot na COVID-19.  (BASAHIN: DOH, experts say PH coronavirus cases could reach 75,000 by June if not contained) 

Lahat kaming nasa tamang edad, kasama na ang isang senior citizen sa bahay, ay umiinom ng maintenance drugs – as in, maraming tabletas. Ang sa akin, dahil far from a healthy lifestyle. Madali kaming naging kondenadong uminom ng mga gamot na hindi ko pa alam kung hanggang kailan. May mga bata rin sa bahay na vulnerable din. Kaya naman lubos ang pag-iingat ko bilang pinuno ng kabahayan sa tuwing lalabas ng bahay para bumili ng pangangailangan. Kaunting kati ng lalamunan, kaunting ahem, rumaragasa na ang pangamba, umuukilkil na ang tanong na umaapaw sa paranoia: “Saan o kanino ako nahawa?”

Idagdag pa ang kabalisahang nakukuha sa kawalang kasiguraduhan ng hinaharap, mga tanong na hindi masasagot, gaya halimbawa ng kung hanggang kailan ba ito? Kung lalala at lalawak pa ba ang salot? Kung may babalikan pa ba akong trabaho pagkatapos? (BASAHIN: Coronavirus cases in PH: Are we seeing the true picture yet?) 

Dahil bawat paghahangad na matapos agad habang naka-quarantine ay pagtanggap na magiging normal uli ang lahat sa hinaharap. Babalik sa dati. Babalik ako sa marumi, maingay, nakasusulasok na lungsod na, nakaiinis isipin, nami-miss ko ngayon. Nami-miss ko ang daily grind ng aking trabaho bilang akademiko. Kung dati’y inip na inip ako sa mga meeting, pasang krus ang tingin sa panibagong committee membership, ngayon, hinahanap ko ang normalidad, ang pang-araw-araw na stress na alam kong kaya kong solusyonan. Alam ko kung kailan matatapos. Kung mapapagod sa maghapon, ang daling pawiin ng malamig na beer ang agam-agam. Pero hindi ngayon. O ang mas nakakatakot, hindi na ngayon mangyayari ang noon. 

Walang masama sa paghahangad maging productive ngayon, lalo’t marami naman talagang pupuwedeng gawin. Pero ang mas kritikal na tanong ay kung normal din bang hindi maging productive? Ibig sabihin, normal bang magmukmok ka at mangamba na bawat simulan mong gawin ay hindi mo matapos? Hindi ka makapag-focus dahil sa mangyayaring kakaiba sa hinaharap? Maghanda sa panganib, at siguro, magkaroon ng healthy dose ng paranoia?

Lahat ng agam-agam na iyan, ayon kay Aisha S. Ahmad, propesor ng political science sa University of Toronto na nagpapakadalubhasa sa war and conflict, ay balidong pasanin. Normal sa isang hindi normal na pagkakataon, gaya ngayon.  

Ayon kay Ahmad, may 3 estado na pagdaraanan muna ang sinumang nakararamdam ng panganib at pangambang dulot ng COVID-19 para masabing napagwagihan na ang agam-agam.

Una, ang pagbibigay ng prayoridad sa kaligtasan. 

Ikalawa, ang mental shift kung kailan makakapag-adjust at matatanggap ng isip mo ang kapanatagan kahit pa rumaragasa ang panganib o crisis condition.

Ikatlo at huli: ang pagyakap (no pun intended sa physical distancing) sa bagong normalidad na ibibigay ng pagkakataon. 

Kapag nakarating na sa ikatlong estado, sinabi ni Ahmad: “Things will start to feel more natural. The work will also make more sense, and you will be more comfortable about changing or undoing what is already in motion. New ideas will emerge that would not have come to mind had you stayed in denial. Continue to embrace your mental shift.”   

Lahat ng agam-agam hinggil sa kawalang kasiguruhan at mga pangamba sa kaligtasan ay hadlang upang masabi ko talagang produktibo ako. Dahil sa bawat gagawin ko, may bahagi ng isip kong nagsasabi na unahin ko muna ang kaligtasan ng aking pamilya. Na nanganganib ang aking pamayanan. Malinaw, nasa unang estado pa lang ako. 

Mahirap maging panatag at magkaroon ng kompiyansa ngayong panahong ito. Tama lang palang mag-alala. Dahil kung susuriin naman kasi natin ang nasa ubod ng salitang “produktibo” lalabas sa atin ang mas magandang kahulugan nito. 

Sa salitang Latin na pro at ducere nagmula ang produce, na pinanggalingan naman ng productive o produktibo. Malinaw sa atin ang pangkaraniwang kahulugan ng pag-produce bilang paglikha, o itong usapin ng productivity habang naka-quarantine. Kaya nga gusto kong maraming matapos, maraming malikha habang kondenado sa loob ng bahay.  

Pero ang pinagsamang pro at ducere ay nangangahulugan ng pangunguna (ducere) sa pagsulong (pro). 

Sa simula ng salita, walang pagbanggit sa maaaring likhaing kapaki-pakinabang, walang product. Sa simula ng salita, sa primal nitong kahulugan, ang maging produktibo ay magpatuloy lamang. Gaya ng pagnanais ng lahat na magpatuloy mabuhay hanggang matapos ang pagsubok na ito. 

Kaya kung palagay mo, wala kang nagawang kapaki-pakinabang habang nasa quarantine dahil sa agam-agam at pangamba, huwag panghinaan, ayos lang ’yan. Dahil ang magpatuloy sa pagsulong hanggang matawid mo nang buhay ang pagsubok na ito ay malinaw nang palatandaan para masabing ikaw ay naging produktibo. – Rappler.com 

Bukod sa pagtuturo ng creative writing, pop culture, research, at seminar in new media sa Departamento ng Literatura at sa Graduate School ng Unibersidad ng Santo Tomas, research fellow din si Joselito D. delos Reyes, PhD, sa UST Research Center for Culture, Arts and Humanities. Siya ang coordinator ng AB Creative Writing program ng UST.