Gov’t should check SAP’s gross failure as COVID cases rise – IBON
The country does not seem to be winning the war against COVID-19, but the government has remained indifferent to the impact of the pandemic on the millions of poor families, said IBON.
Higher inflation for poorest Filipinos underscores urgent need for continued cash subsidies
According to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), headline inflation rose to 2.5% in June 2020 from 2.1% in May 2020. Behind this uptick are price increases in: transportation, particularly tricycle fares; alcoholic beverages and tobacco; housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels; and communication.
Hatid Probinsya and Balik Probinsya, more harm than good?
The national government’s program of sending people back to their hometown recently came under fire for spreading COVID-19 in the provinces. For example, Tanauan town and Baybay City in Leyte each recorded their first respective confirmed COVID-19 cases last May 28. Both confirmed cases were among the first and so far only batch of beneficiaries of the Balik Probinsya, Bagong Pag-asa Program (BP2). Meanwhile, in the war-torn city of Marawi, nine confirmed cases are beneficiaries of the Hatid Probinsya program.
Health advocates file petition for mass testing
Citing the people’s right to health under the Philippine Constitution, the petition for a writ of mandamus shall compel the Department of Health and other agencies to conduct pro-active mass testing, aggressive contract tracing and effective isolation, and treatment of Covid-19 positive cases to contain the spread of the virus.
The anomaly of transport modernization (Part II)
In many instances, the solution to the complex transport problems of Metro Manila lies in the physics of the problem, in the same way that dealing with COVID-19 requires medical science. But the Duterte administration has simply picked up its pre-COVID proposal of “jeepney modernization” and used the pandemic to justify finally pushing for it, amid protestations by jeepney drivers and the adverse impact on millions of commuters.
Ang sinapit ng mga drayber
“Dati, kami ang kinakawayan. Ngayon, kami ang kumakaway [para mamalimos}.”–Joel Caligayan, tsuper ng jeep biyaheng Rosario-Cubao
The anomaly of transport modernization (Part I)
For the majority of poor commuters, what is more painful to see now is how the Duterte government, not backed by science, is on the verge of banning the traditional jeepney from the road forever and insisting that modernization is the cure.
The Old and New Bilibid Prisons in the Time of Pandemics
More than a century ago, Philippine prisons reeled from a flu pandemic. History might be repeated without adequate healthcare for prisoners and drastic interventions to stem the Covid-19 outbreak.
Govt jeepney ban has already cost drivers Php78,000
Jeepney drivers, to date, have lost some 78 working days over the past 3 months or 13 weeks of suspended mass transport. This translates to a total net income loss of Php78,000 or Php26,000 per month of lockdown, said IBON. Out of work jeepney drivers lose Income with each passing day of transport suspension.
Hidden Victims of the Pandemic: The Old Man, the Jail Aide, and the Convict
Three persons deprived of liberty describe how inhuman conditions in the country’s jails and prisons are placing them at greater risk amid the Covid-19 pandemic.