WE HAVE avoided the fresh firestorm now engulfing Europe because Filipinos are starting to learn how to live with the pandemic.
Filipinos are sticking to the simple and basic health protocol of washing hands as often as possible, wearing face mask and social distancing. In sum, most Filipinos were not complacent and dodged COVID-19 amid the economic reopening.
The soaring COVID-19 cases in Europe, and the United States as well, are a reminder that the pandemic will not simply go away, and that we should not let our guards down.
France has virtually shut down for November while Germany and England are following suit with several tough measures, including stay-at-home orders and the early closure of bars and restaurants.
Europeans may have thought that the virus is fading away judging from their early successes in curbing their infection rates. They reopened the economy as if the virus has been licked and with little regard for social distancing. They trooped to the beaches, public places and entertainment centers in great numbers. The recent spike in infections, however, is proving that the virus has not rested at all and will continue to attack the vulnerable people.
The COVID-19 infection figures as of Oct. 30, 2020 show an alarming rate that prompted many European governments to impose countrywide lockdown, in the case of France, and strict quarantine measures that limited the movement of the population in other parts of the continent.
France’s daily infection rate shot up to 47,637 while Italy recorded 26,831. The UK is not far behind with 23,065, while Spain had 23,580. Belgium tallied 21,048 while Germany registered 18,732 cases.
These numbers are staggering and might have brought down the Philippine health-care system to its knees if it happened here. Fortunately, the Philippines seems to have flattened the curve with daily virus cases down to below 2,000 in the past two weeks. President Duterte’s administration has contained the infection rate with 41,291 active cases as of Oct. 20, with total recovery of 330,457. Total Philippine deaths stood at 7,185, or a mortality rate of just below two percent.
The relatively low figures in the Philippines should prompt our government to reopen further the economy to restore jobs and prevent thousands of small establishments and retail outlets from permanently closing down. Our authorities, for one, should allow more provincial buses to enter and leave the capital region to promote domestic tourism and revive economic activities in the countryside.
I believe in the resiliency of the Filipinos. Months of lockdown and the most rigid quarantine rules have taught our employees and workers to respect the coronavirus. They have learned to adapt to the new normal of commuting, shopping, dining and working in office spaces. They know the purpose of social distancing and they value the wearing of face masks and washing of hands, conscious that they have to protect their spouse, children, parents and other relatives at home from the virus.
Meanwhile, I am pleased to learn that foreign and local investors have not quit the Philippines despite the pandemic’s damage to the economy. For instance, the business process outsourcing sector has remained upbeat, vowing to hire at least 17,000 workers in the next three to four months. The sector’s optimism is understandable. There is demand from the health sector because of the pandemic and this has prompted some BPO companies to expand their work force.
The pandemic has also made the BPO sector flexible. Almost 70 percent of the whole industry’s labor pool now works from home despite connectivity issues and the slow Internet, according to the Information Technology and Business Process Association of the Philippines.
Another foreign investor, agricultural company Cargill Philippines Inc., is pursuing a planned P12.5-billion investments in the country over the next five years despite the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on its operations.
My group’s AllHome Corp., a leading one-stop shop for home needs, has just expanded its network in Luzon. It opened a store in Santiago, Isabela and another at Evia Lifestyle Center in Las Piñas City. The opening of two new outlets boosted AllHome’s store network to 47. The group plans to open two more stores for the remainder of the year to bring the total to 49 by end-2020.
Investments and other economic activities in the Philippines will prosper if we play our cards well against Covid-19. Our workers are responsible and are adapting to the new normal. They are not complacent despite the current low infection rate. They have actually kept the Covid-19 numbers low and we should give credit to them.
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This piece first came out in Business Mirror on Nov. 2, 2020 under the column “The Entrepreneur.” For comments/feedback e-mail to: mbv.secretariat@gmail.com or visitwww.mannyvillar.com.ph./PN
