GOVERNANCE MATTERS
Former Vice President Jejomar Binay
Looking back, it would be difficult not to feel a sense of frustration, even anger, at the many opportunities that were missed or ignored by government that could have made a difference today.
No amount of feigned exuberance or managed events could convince our people that the government has done an excellent job in managing the pandemic.
Far from being under control, the virus is again spreading rapidly as new variants are discovered to have reached our shores. A hard lockdown - similar in scope, execution, and harshness as the one imposed a year ago - has been ruled out because such a move would spell the death-knell for an already gasping economy. Cities in Metro Manila are instead enforcing localized quarantines in an effort to control the spread of the virus in the immediate community, but not at the expense of other communities which are, so far, in safe zones.
Public and private hospitals are starting to feel the impact of the rising cases. Beds are starting to fill up, and fears are again being raised that if left uncontrolled, this surge in cases could again push the health system to the brink. Doctors have issued an appeal to the public to ride out this surge inside their homes.
Economically, the figures are deeply troubling. Life is getting harder and there is little reason for the people to look to the rest of the year with optimism.
In the midst of all these swirling events, the government seems to be more pre-occupied with two things: packaging the ceremonial roll-out of donated vaccines as the wonder cure for our pandemic and economic ills, and pursuing a punishing and oppressive campaign against political activists.
When the first health workers were vaccinated, senior government officials, to a man, declared that the road to recovery has begun. As one over-enthusiastic official said, “tuloy-tuloy na po ito.” But that has not materialized, so far. Out of a target of six million health workers, a little over 100,000 have been inoculated, and the problem has been traced mainly to the hesitation of many health workers to have themselves vaccinated with vaccines from China. Many have expressed willingness to wait for other vaccine brands.
This only reminds us of the failure of government to communicative effectively with their immediate audience, the health workers themselves, especially those in government-run hospitals who are the first recipients of the vaccines. And if government cannot even convince its own people, it has to find more creative ways to convince the general population.
With vaccines purchased by the national government courtesy of foreign loans have yet to arrive, the national leadership has correctly resisted the pleas of economic managers to order a loosening of restrictions in mobility and business activities. But I find rather disturbing the declaration that easing these restrictions would be done once government has vaccinated a million people.
Clearly, those advising the leadership has done a disservice by not providing a proper briefing on how to develop herd immunity (immunizing at least 70 per cent of the population), and being up front about the glacial pace of vaccination. Some observers even estimate that if government is able to vaccinate 30,000 persons a week, it will take 44 years before we achieve herd immunity.
But while the administration has sadly displayed a lack of focus and cohesion in the fight against the pandemic, its zeal and dedication in tamping down all forms of legitimate dissent is astounding. In a span of one year, with the complicity of a pliant Congress, the administration has succeeded in shutting down the operations of broadcasting giant ABS-CBN and approving an Anti-Terror Law. Through the NTF-ELCAC, it has undertaken a campaign of harassment, intimidation and red-tagging against students, lawyers, members of the clergy, journalists, and celebrities.
And in a span of one week, the Philippine National Police, has left a trail of a carnage that began in Southern Tagalog and Rizal, leaving at least nine activists dead, and ended in Samar, with the equally reprehensible ambush of a town mayor.
Clearly, this is no way to manage a pandemic.
The past year has offered us several lessons in public management, civics and governance. I hope that we also see the bigger realization: that leadership should not be simply about voting for an image but seeking and even demanding substance, which are needed during a crisis.