The Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) was urged Friday to direct the Philippine National Police (PNP) to exert extra efforts in apprehending COVID-19 fake news spreaders as the erroneous claims have adversely affected the government’s all-out fight against the spread of the virus.
Barangay workers in Quezon City were dismayed why a huge number of tricycle group members in the locality refused to undergo the free swab tests provided by the city government and Department of Health (DOH).
In an exclusive interview, DILG Undersecretary and spokesperson Jonathan Malaya vowed that the department will relentlessly dispel “this fake news and disinformation to strengthen public confidence in the vaccination program.’’
He added that the DILG is currently rolling out a massive information campaign among the priority groups for immunization with the Department of Health (DOH), Public Information agency (PIA) and other concerned agencies.
But tricycle driver Joannie Romulo will have none of that as he bared that a doctor told them that COVID-19 can only afflict the elderly with underlying medical conditions.
When pressed further, Romulo refused to identify the name of the said doctor insisting that the information given by the supposed medical practitioner was genuine.
He maintained that being subjected to the swab test is a waste of time “dahil sa haba ng nakapila’’ (with the long queue) since the “sayang na oras’’ (wasted hours) may further deplete his daily income worsened by the pandemic.
“Ibig sabihin ng pagsalang sa swab test bawas kita. Sin lakas ako ng kalabaw kaya wala akong Covid-19. Sipon at ubo normal lang yan kaya hindi ibig sabihin na may COVID ako. (Agreeing to swab test translates to less income. I am fit as a carabao so do not have COVID-19. Colds and coughing are normal but it does not mean that I have the COVID-19 disease),’’ Romulo said.
Romulo also noted that the doctor who was a passenger numerous times said the view that everyone can be infected with COVID-19 is “gawa gawa lang (only made up)’’.
He admitted wearing face masks only out of fear of being arrested, jailed and penalized.
With the spread of fake news about COVID-19, barangay health personnel feared that some qualified recipients of the vaccine will have second thoughts of being injected by the dose.
“This certainly hampers the government’s program to prevent the spike of COVID-19 in the country,’’ a barangay health worker who requested anonymity said.
In a January 26 press briefing, DILG Undersecretary Epimaco Densing III emphasized “we will not force those who do not want to get vaccinated on the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
However, Densing said the local government units (LGUs) should properly educate their constituents about the country's vaccination program.
Based on the DOH guidelines, Densing said injecting the COVID-19 vaccine is not mandatory but the said individual may be reinserted at the back of the line if they decide to be vaccinated later.
Reports disclosed that many who spread fake news about COVID-19 were already arrested and charged in court.