Convinced by circumstance

Ever since the President declared the Enhanced Community Quarantine last March 15, me and some neighbors have been doing our best to show compassion for eight construction workers at a job site in our neighborhood. The eight workers who are from Bulacan were stranded there while waiting for money from their boss before getting out of Metro Manila. One neighbor brings them lunch every day, others give masks, snacks and cash etc. The question is how many thousand or hundred thousand workers are stranded in Metro Manila who have no money, can’t get out and won’t be allowed into their respective provinces? This is a serious problem that everybody seems to have no answer for, and nobody wants to address in particular.

When I interviewed Mayor Alfred Romualdez of Tacloban City, he could not help but point out how ironic it was that the Philippine government was providing sweeper flights for foreigners and tourists wanting to leave the Philippines, mercy flights for OFWs stranded in many parts of the world, but nothing and no one has done anything to help stranded workers and locals to get back to their families and provinces! This is a national embarrassment, we leave them stranded, unable and unqualified to get assistance from LGUs in Metro Manila and simply think it’s somebody else’s responsibility. To add insult to injury, some Governors and Mayors treat those attempting to walk back on foot like Lepers! Shame on all of you! The least you could have done was to provide them food and shelter, but no you provided them with an ultimatum and a checkpoint.

 Mayor Romualdez pointed out that since we have the rapid testing kits already, why not identify and announce designated testing areas for those people wanting to go back to the provinces, test them and give them a pass through card. Stop calling it the “Balik Probinsya” program because that implies that you are dead broke and couldn’t survive in Metro Manila and simply want to go back wherever home is. It is a lot cheaper to test them, and pay for their bus fare or organize Army trucks to bring them home where they can undergo the mandatory quarantine in their town, city or barangay. When I count the cost of caring for the eight stranded workers in our street, our collective help would have been more than the cost of bus money and snacks! The DOLE must take responsibility for all these WORKERS!

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 Thanks to COVID-19, Filipinos have been convinced by circumstance that we all need to make personal sacrifices in terms of freedoms and our sense of entitlement or plain “angas”. Yes we are all itching to get out of our homes, hit the beach, reconnect and get back to work. But after two months worth of public information, horrific global mortality and undeniable science, we all know things are never going to be the same. In fact, if we are all really honest about it, many of us don’t want to go back to the way things were. Do you want to wake up at 5:30 a.m. and spend two to four hours in daily traffic jam, or wake up when you want to, have late breakfasts and work at your pace and leisure without stepping outside your house? Do you really want to go back to working 9 to 5 again and play nice and neat all dressed up after spending 30 to 45 days working mostly in your pajamas, not having to put on make up or shave for days? Do you want to stare out the window from a “skyscraper,” staring at smog, steel and concrete, or do you now look forward to the birds that dart in and out of your garden or bedroom window. Should we allow the return of blaring buses, polluting jeepneys, and greed driven factories to run 24/7 as they once again blanket Metro Manila with thick smog and noise? I don’t think so.

By God’s grace we have been convinced by circumstance that productivity is not dependent on physical presence and man-hours at the office. In fact some CEOs are glad to try out Work From Home (WFH) set-ups because they can save a ton of money in rental, utilities, equipment and maintenance while having employees who are now experiencing Work/Life balance. Many of us will still have to travel and get around but now more than ever we are probably more willing to consider ideas and solutions of government that we would have otherwise opposed loudly if not violently. In fact now is the best time ever for government agencies to implement projects that have been shelved all because of public opposition. I’ve already said that now is the time for the DOTr and the DPWH to rehabilitate the entire stretch of EDSA and C5 and build both to world class standard or build to specs required based on use especially the truck lane of C5.

Once the DPWH rehabilitates the surface area of EDSA, the MMDA can step in or work with the DOTr and DPWH to install the express lane for the Rapid Bus Transit System, as well as a wider and dedicated motorcycle lane with barriers because the expected change is that more and more people will shift from driving cars to riding motorcycles due to the need for physical distancing. Just last week I learned from friends about people buying scooters online and sellers providing home delivery. Now is also the best time to tighten the return of dilapidated vehicles back on our streets as well as restudying the existing public vehicles such as tricycles in the light of COVID-19. Now that people are more compliant than ever, now is the time to deal with the problems and implement the solutions. It’s called Momentum!

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