The Art of Sugarcoating: The Philippine Government’s Sweet Surprises Amidst the Bitterness of Covid-19.
For Of The People’s [Word] of the Moment series
I once read somewhere that a global pandemic can easily showcase the truth and reality of our societal systems. Recently, it is within the comfort of our own homes wherein we have discovered how well local governments around the world deal with the occurrence of such events. Most countries have implemented strict lockdowns, and have provided adequate facilities to test their citizens for Covid-19.
Now, I personally avoid comparing the Philippines to other countries as much as possible. Although there is a great amount of injustice and underdevelopment present, I believe in the capability of my generation to heal the country from the cancer of its own society. However, with the way our country has been combating this pandemic, I cannot help but constantly question the decisions of our administration, and compare ourselves to the other countries that seem to be combating Covid-19 like it’s a walk in the park.
At this point in time, international media groups have been noticing the unconventional duration of our economic lockdown. The implementation of multiple variations of Community Quarantine in the country has left most of us in utter confusion. On top of all that, the recent news regarding the absence of mass testing has aroused numerous discussions. This is where I find the term “sugarcoating” most applicable to the situation.
Sugarcoating — the act of making something superficially attractive or acceptable.
The government has this very strong tendency to sugarcoat the reality of things and provide selective justice. They often look at big problems and talk about them with such nonchalance, to the point that it comes off as if solving our country’s problems is the least of their concerns. More often than not, they tweak information or “sugarcoat” information to protect their image or sometimes cover up the truth. They also often seem to provide mismatched remedies to various issues occurring in the country. I noticed this has been happening since the beginning of the war on drugs all up until this very day as we fight off Covid-19. I mean, if you haven’t already noticed, the Philippine government resorted to military solutions instead of medical solutions to solve a global pandemic.
On the evening of May 19, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque verbally attacked CNN reporter Tricia Terada. He claimed that she misinterpreted his statement regarding mass testing in the Philippines, and even mentioned how there was no other country in the world that tested all of their citizens.
“What we’re doing is not mass testing, it is expanded target testing and no country in the world is testing all its citizens. Maybe you got confused yesterday, because I said that’s what they’re doing in Wuhan, because in the second wave they want to rest 11 million residents of Wuhan. But that’s only in Wuhan, they can’t manage to test of Chinese because their population is in the billions.
You used the wrong term, so there was trouble on Twitter. That’s why I appeal to the media, be careful with your reporting. Because in your report, Trish, we supposedly have no expanded testing program. The government supposedly has no program at all, which is not true.”
Terada reported that there will be no implementation of a testing program of any kind. Although in some way she may be right, Roque backed up his claim by saying the government will provide “Expanded Targeted Testing”. In a nutshell, Expanded Targeted Testing is basically only testing people who need to be tested. According to Roque, this includes individuals who are symptomatic, have travel history coming from abroad, have had close contact to those infected, and those who tested positive in the rapid antibody test. This is a clear representation of sugarcoating. They cover up their incompetence by using new terms for the public to scrutinize, just like what happened with the implementation of different types of Enhanced Quarantine.
Roque also noted that the country’s testing capacity has reached approximately 11,127 tests as of May 15, 2020. You would naturally expect the number to be slightly higher than that considering targeted testing only began on April 14. Which was literally one full month after President Duterte placed Luzon under Enhanced Community Quarantine. However, on May 18, the Congress admitted that the average number of conducted tests is 7,809 only, per day.
The Department of Health also seems to recently have been sugarcoating as well. Another report from CNN showcases the statement of Dr. Edsel Salvana, Infectious Disease Specialist. Here is a short excerpt from his statement:
“If you look at the number of cases and tests we’ve done, our closest match surprisingly enough is Japan.”
Health Secretary Francisco Duque stated in an online hearing that the country is currently experiencing the “second wave” of this pandemic. Apparently, the first wave started in January, which were the first three (3) recorded cases in the country. They call this the “first wave” because there was a brief hiatus in the number of cases up until March, with a sudden spike of over 10,000 recorded cases. The DOH believes that we are slowly flattening the curve. On the contrary, we lack the adequate data and evidence to actually support that we are already experiencing the second wave. If you ask me, I believe that the first wave hasn’t even ended yet.
By the looks of the graph inserted above, the curve seems to be fluctuating instead of flattening. Indeed, the total number of new cases per day has reduced, but the government is yet to meet its targeted testing capacity of 30,000 per day. Another thing that the government will refuse to tell you is the time it takes to receive your results. If you get tested in a private hospital that has adequate facilities and a proper protocol, you will most likely receive your results within a few days after your DOH-accredited swab test. But in government facilities that lack equipment and protocol, you will receive your results within a week, oftentimes even longer than that. A devastating number of deaths that Covid-19 has brought to our country is not even from people who were lying in their hospital beds, but people who were waiting for their test results.
I watched President Duterte’s “shoot them dead” statement on YouTube while it was still a hot topic. After hearing what he had to say, I couldn’t help but think to myself, “Our government will probably kill us faster than the Coronavirus can.” Now a month later, I realize that this thought is probably more true to life than I think it is. Let’s face it, we all know that the Philippines is far from flattening the curve. The government’s priorities are obviously still in utter disarrangement. Many citizens refuse to abide the rules of social distancing because it is not being properly implemented in public places. There is still a large population of individuals who lack the proper education regarding the virus, mainly because the government decided to shutdown a very large contributor of mass communications in the country.
Our country’s next move? We cannot be entirely sure, because our leaders always seem to conveniently pull surprises out of their sleeves. I believe, at this point, that its best if we avoid remaining oblivious to the truth. We have to start taking matters into our own hands if we do not wish to die from this pandemic.
If the government cannot effectively take care of the Filipino people, then we must continue to take care of each other. Donate to your nearby hospital, stay indoors as much as possible, practice social distancing, and wear your PPEs accordingly. They are simply waiting for the perfect opportunity to serve us with yet another set of sweets to devour.
References:
Roque says CNN reporter misinterpreted his ‘mass testing’ comments. (2020). Manila Bulletin News. Retrieved 20 May 2020, from https://news.mb.com.ph/2020/05/20/roque-says-cnn-reporter-misinterpreted-his-mass-testing-comments/
Roque assures gov’t has mass testing policy. (2020). Manila Bulletin News. Retrieved 20 May 2020, from https://news.mb.com.ph/2020/05/19/roque-assures-govt-has-mass-testing-policy/
Lalu, G. (2020). No mass testing? Opposition groups ask what was 2-month lockdown for. Newsinfo.inquirer.net. Retrieved 25 May 2020, from https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1277709/no-mass-testing-opposition-groups-ask-what-was-the-two-months-lockdown-for
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bA7Tww_T_Ic
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4qGVkqP5Kc
https://www.endcoronavirus.org/countries
(2020). Officialgazette.gov.ph. Retrieved 20 May 2020, from https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/downloads/2020/05may/20200518-Report-to-the-Joint-Congressional-Oversight-Committee-1.pdf
Kravchuk, M. (2020). Are We On Our Own? Furor Over Lack Of Mass Testing For COVID-19 | OneNews.PH. OneNews.ph. Retrieved 25 May 2020, from https://www.onenews.ph/are-we-on-our-own-furor-over-lack-of-mass-testing-for-covid-19
Philippines now on ‘second wave’ of COVID-19 cases — Health chief. (2020). cnn. Retrieved 25 May 2020, from https://www.cnnphilippines.com/news/2020/5/20/philippine-covid-19-second-wave-duque.html
Of The People’s [Word] Of The Moment series is a weekly mini-publication relating a new word or concept to a current and relevant issue today. This week, Monique Cruz relates the concept of sugarcoating to the efforts of the Philippine government in combating Covid-19.
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