As the government enforces new restrictions amid the rise in COVID-19 cases, Senator Joel Villanueva urged authorities to treat health and economic frontliners with compassion to continue working and keep the economy afloat.
(Senate of the Philippines / FILE PHOTO)
"First things first, 'new rules' must be conveyed clearly and carried out with compassion," Villanueva, chairman of the Senate labor committee, said in a statement after authorities announced Monday, March 22, the implementation of their "NCR+" bubble set-up for two weeks.
With the "NCR+" bubble, non-essential travels going to and out of Metro Manila and four adjacent provinces are prohibited to contain the spread of the coronavirus variants. This comes along with the 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. curfew being implemented in Metro Manila.
Essential workers are exempted from the travel restrictions as most businesses continue to operate.
"Ang checkpoint, gawin po nating comfort stations para sa mga health and economic frontliners (Checkpoints should be converted into comfort stations for health and economic frontliners)," Villanueva said.
"Kung naglalakad, imbes na sitahin, bigyan ng tubig. Saludohan silang mga madaling araw umaalis ng bahay at hatinggabi na nakakauwi upang maglingkod sa ating bayang naghihirap at ekonomiyang naghihingalo (If they are walking, instead of accosting, give them water. Let us honor those who had to leave early in the morning and come home in the wee hours of the night to serve our country and help our ailing economy)," he said.
He also suggested the launch of "midnight express" by the government, providing free transport services to essential workers. Government buses, vans or military trucks could be used for this effort, said the senator.
Villanueva said the government should also continue its emergency job programs for unemployed and displaced workers.
On Monday, March 22, the Philippines recorded 8,019 new COVID-19 cases, the highest single-day increase yet, which pushed the total number of confirmed cases in the country to 671,792.