Government Response to COVID-19: Expectations and Actions After ECQ Is Lifted

By Alice Llamas

Last April 30, 2020, the Nordic Chamber of Commerce (NordCham) of the Philippines hosted a webinar, themed “Government Response to COVID-19: Expectations and Actions after ECQ is Lifted.” Invited as guest speaker was Joey Concepcion, Presidential Adviser for Entrepreneurship and Founder of Go Negosyo.

During his talk, he mentioned that the private and public sectors are always coordinating with each other on ways to address this pandemic. He cited what San Miguel Corporation’s Ramon Ang said about life being more important than money, as well as all his companies’ efforts to help the Filipino people during this time of crisis. Mr. Concepcion said that, while it is true that life is more important, our livelihood should also not be destroyed in the process.

He noted that South Korea and Taiwan did an excellent job of flattening the curve during their respective quarantine periods. He further added that the best solution right now is to conduct mass testing since the cost of locking down is higher than conducting tests. As of this writing, the Philippine Government has already set up quarantine centers — World Trade Center and Philippine Arena; both have about 100,000 beds.

Mr. Concepcion also said that the private sector should also do its part during this pandemic, one of which is to provide testing kits for their respective employees. He shared that they tested around 854 people in a barangay in Sampaloc and found out that some people were asymptomatic, some were safe, and some had antibodies. These results are now being studied.

He shared that once quarantine is lifted, public transportation will be allowed, but only to a certain percentage. Public gatherings such as concerts and masses will still not be allowed; gyms and exercise spaces will still be closed. However, he shared that seniors will still be allowed to go to work. Moving forward, he mentioned that the government will do it’s best to help Philippine Airlines and its employees recover. Help will also be given to seamen, who are currently quarantined at the Manila bay.

A word of caution though, there is also a serious risk of having a second wave, just like what happened to some countries. We all need to be vigilant and exercise all possible means of caution to protect ourselves.

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About the author:

Alice possesses a solid decade of experience in business development, human resources, recruitment and talent acquisition. She graduated from Far Eastern University with a degree in Political Science.