Pandemic can’t be solved by just waiting for vaccine --Leni

Vice President Leni Robredo said on Wednesday the government’s response should not entirely depend on containing the coronavirus outbreak until a vaccine becomes available.

“Hindi mapipigil ang pandemya kung basta mag-aabang na lang tayo ng bakuna. Kailangan maampat ang pagkalat nito sa lalong madaling panahon (The pandemic can’t be stopped if we will only wait for a vaccine. We need to prevent its spread as soon as possible),” she said in a 22-minute public address streamed through her Facebook page.

Robredo gave concrete steps on how the country can recover from the COVID-19 pandemic two days after President Duterte delivered his State of the Nation Address (SONA).

Robredo said the administration should use a data-driven approach to improve the way it is battling COVID-19, so it can identify the areas that need medical attention and support.

“Nagsisimula ang lahat sa tamang datos, na pundasyon ng tamang desisyon. Mula dito, matutukoy ang kung sino at aling mga lugar ang dapat tutukan pagdating sa mass testing, contact tracing, at suporta sa mga komunidad at ospital (Everything begins with correct data, which is the foundation of right decisions. From here, we can identify who and which areas we should focus on when it comes to mass testing, contract tracing, and support to communities and hospitals),” she said.

”Kung magiging tama ang tugon sa aspekto ng healthcare, mako-control ang community transmission, magiging mas mabilis, ligtas, at strategic ang pagbubukas ng ekonomiya, maiiwasan ang pagkawala ng trabaho, at hindi na dadami pa ang dadanas ng kahirapan. (If the response would be right in the aspect of healthcare, community transmission can be controlled, the opening of the economy will be faster, safer, and strategic, job losses will be prevented, and lesser people will suffer from poverty),” she stressed.

The vice president laid out key suggestions that range from single data system to make COVID-19 data gathering and verification faster, inclusion of academic institutions in verifying cases, to helping teachers, parents, and students in the transition towards distance learning.

In the same message, she said that public health professionals are the ones who truly understand the pandemic so they should take the lead in the fight against COVID-19. 

Robredo also said everyone should patronize local businesses and micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) to help the economic recovery of the country following the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

“We should prioritize the purchase of goods made in the Philippines, even if it’s just temporary. As much as possible, let us also support micro, small, and medium enterprises,” she said in Filipino.

She recognized the need for businesses to tide over the upcoming economic recession, adding that the government must help businesses reopen and urge entrepreneurs to start coming up with new ventures. 

Empowering these businessmen will create jobs for the millions of Filipinos who lost theirs during the pandemic, she said.