No house-to-house search for infected people

Call it my second Zoom interview and it seems to becoming the new norm for my talk show “Straight from the Sky”, as we are able to interview people who are far away, thus making it quite convenient for me to interview people who aren’t in Cebu. So tonight we are honored to have with us our dear friend, Bohol Governor Arthur Yap who is in his office in Tagbilaran City, Bohol while I’m here in MyTV studios for this 20-2020th show!

What we learned from this interview with Yap is that, first of all, in four months of lockdown, they only had one fatality due to COVID-19 and very few infected cases. Yap attributes this to the discipline of the Boholanos. While during lockdown, this did not stop public transportation from serving the public, while most businesses were still in operation, although the churches were closed. Also shut down were the airports and seaports, thus no one was allowed to enter Bohol.

Last May, as most Cebuanos know, was the month of fiestas in Bohol, but there was no stopping the celebrations from going on in the various towns, but the only difference is that they didn’t allow visitors from other places, including Cebu. So basically they are better off in Bohol than we in Cebu who have remained to be in world-record lockdown time.

So watch this very interesting Zoom interview with Bohol Governor Arthur Yap tonight via Zoom on SkyCable’s channel 53 at 8 p.m. with replays on Wednesday and Saturday same time and channel. We also have replays on MyTV’s channel 30 at 9 p.m. Monday and at 7 a.m. and 9 p.m. on Wednesday and Friday.

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First off, allow me to congratulate The FREEMAN on its 101st year of publication. I would like to believe that of all the years that The FREEMAN has been in existence, 2020 must be the most difficult year yet as the entire Cebu was on lockdown for three months and many businesses had to shut down, which means no one could advertise with The FREEMAN. But life has to go on, and we who work as columnists never had to stop writing even during these dire times. I just hope that our president, Miguel Belmonte, and Sir Dodong Gullas, would literally bite the bullet until the day a vaccine can be found to cure COVID-19. God bless The FREEMAN!

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Last week, we heard from Philippine National Police chief Archie Gamboa that he supports the move to go on a house-to-house search for anyone infected with COVID-19. I’m totally against this plan because it isn’t only expensive and impractical; it also increases chances of incidents involving privacy and human rights violations. There are just too many questionable scenarios that could happen if this is allowed to happen.

To add to this issue, Department of Interior and Local Government Sec. Eduardo Año even encouraged people who know of neighbors infected with COVID-19 to report them to the authorities. He said, “To our countrymen, if you know a neighbor who is COVID-19 positive and hiding, please report them to us. This is a law, RA 11332.”

Actually it is really up to the neighbors to report those who are infected so they can’t further infect their own neighbors. Mind you, my neighbors reported a person living within their community who was COVID-19 positive, but kept it to himself. So the neighbors asked that he be taken away from there.

Thankfully, presidential spokesman Harry Roque said there would be no house-to-house operation. He said, “We don't have a provision for house-to-house. Only the political critics of the government, again, weaponizing this very important task of tracing… (Patients) will have to be reported by the persons themselves, their family or the barangay.”

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I just read a Philippine STAR news report that entry-level nurses working in public hospitals and health institutions will now enjoy higher pay after the Department of Budget and Management raised their salary grade. It covers all nurse positions, whether regular, casual or contractual in nature, full-time or part-time, in national government agencies, including state universities and colleges and state corporations, as well as local government units covered by the Compensation and Position Classification System under Republic Act No. 6758 or the Compensation and Position Classification Act of 1989. This is great news!