MANILA – Senator Risa Hontiveros lambasted President Rodrigo Duterte after the latter called as “lucky” the health workers who died while fighting the spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.
The opposition senator said frontliners should not be dying in the first place if only the government was able to give what they need while doing their duty.
“Our health workers who died from COVID-19 were not lucky,” Hontiveros said. “Our health workers should not have been dying in the first place if they have been given ample personal protective equipment and access to testing.”
During his address to the media on Monday night, Duterte said doctors, nurses and other healthcare workers who died of COVID-19 are lucky because they died for the country.
“May mga doktor, nurses at attendants na namatay. Sila ‘yung nasawi ang buhay para lang makatulong sa kapwa. Napakasuwerte nila. Namatay sila para sa bayan,” the President said.
“‘Yun ang dapat, ang rason na bakit tayo mamatay. ‘Wag tayong mamatay sa ibang rason, nasagasaan ka lang at wala ka namang ginawa,” he added. “It would be an honor to die for your country, I assure you.”
Aside from Hontiveros, Gabriela Women’s Partylist also lambasted Duterte as he should have mentioned the names of fallen health workers instead of “oligarchs and corporation who are just sharing crumbs from their profit.”
“It is very inappropriate for Duterte to romanticize the death of our health workers under current circumstances as some stroke of luck. In fact he should be alarmed: we are losing those who are supposed to save lives,” it said.
“How could the President miss this very critical lens at this crucial time? Bakit sasabihing swerte sila sa kanilang pagkamatay gayong dapat na manatili silang buhay nang makapagpatuloy sa paglilingkod sa bayan?” the group added.
The country’s hospitals continue to suffer from a lack of PPEs as the supply of medical equipment plunged worldwide, while at least 12 doctors have died fighting in the frontlines against the respiratory illness.
The Philippines has declared a national emergency and placed Luzon under a month-long lockdown COVID-19, which has infected 1,546 in the country as of Monday afternoon./PN
