Kailangan ng taong pumunta sa palengke para bumili ng pagkain, sa botika para bumili ng gamot, at sa ospital para magpa-check-up o magpa-opera. Paano makararating sa ospital ang buntis para manganak at si lola para magpa-dialysis kung walang pampublikong transportasyon? (People need to go to the market to buy food, to the drugstore to buy medicine, to the hospital for a check-up or an operation. How can the pregnant women get to the hospital to give birth or the grandmother for her dialysis if there is no public transportation?)

MAYBE what’s uncomfortable about quarantines and lockdowns of borders of whole cities and countries, aside from the obvious impeding of the freedom of movement, is that there seems to be no difference between authoritarian regimes and democracies in addressing the contagion risk. Even the scenes of empty streets and masked stragglers come from the same horror movie. What the government decrees is automatically imposed and followed, yes, for the good of the community. Maybe the democracies moved a little bit more slowly fearing resistance from the governed. But they followed the early movers anyway.

COVID-19 PH4, Carlo L. Navarro, a 48-year-old tax lawyer, visited Japan in February with his wife, Evie and only daughter, Gia. Throughout their trip, they wore protective masks, gloves, and incessantly used alcohol on their hands. Seven days after returning home, Mr. Navarro showed mild signs of COVID-19. A responsible citizen and father, he immediately insisted on being tested for the virus at a private hospital. His infection was confirmed within two days. He was the first Filipino to be found positive in the country. He was quickly confined to prevent its spread. His family, household members, and contacts have all tested negative.

With over 500 cases in the Philippines, the COVID-19 threat is already serious enough to concern everyone. But its unwanted presence has also further exposed Filipinos to the authoritarian virus that to this day has survived the 1896 Revolution, World Wars I and II, the EDSA civilian-military mutiny of 1986, and the untiring efforts of human rights defenders, independent journalists, committed artists and academics, civil society organizations, and social and political activists to combat it.

Spring officially began on March 21^st . In our tropical country, it is also the start of the long, hot summer season.

If anything, this China coronavirus-induced crisis spectacularly revealed the unworkability and shortcomings of a federal form of government for the Philippines. When push came to shove, the instincts of even the most ardent federalism supporters almost immediately were for the National Government to take control of the situation.

IT’S THE WORST EPIDEMIC of our times, a health emergency that has now left more than 420,000 infected, 18,800 dead and paralyzed the global economy. The scale has been clear for weeks. All the more baffling, therefore, to watch poor decisions being repeated, over and over again.

“Answer me quickly, Lord; my spirit fails. Do not hide Your face from me or I will be like those who go down to the pit. Let the morning bring me word of Your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in You.” Psalm 143:7-8

As I started to write this weekly column, my third in “quarantine,” a Paul Williams song titled, “What Would They Say,” came to mind. For those who may not remember that 44-year-old song, or were not yet alive at the time, I share with you below some of its lyrics. I recall the song was used in the 1976 TV movie The Boy in a Plastic Bubble, which got four Emmy nominations.

School closures have been one of the most massive forms of mitigation that states and societies have undertaken to flatten the coronavirus curve. As a major form of social distancing, it entails the complete shutdown of school and university campuses from students and workers and a shift to online learning as well as online operations, which became an emerging practice in few places.

The Independent Electricity Market Operator Philippines (IEMOP) sent a media advisory about electricity supply-demand in weeks two and three of this month and the numbers are not good. There was a huge decline in average demand of 2.03 gigawatt (GW) from March 15, the start of Metro Manila quarantine or lockdown from the rest of Luzon. Consequently, prices at the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) also declined.

THERE is a reason why the public is clamoring for more information during this pandemic. Nobody wants to be left out, especially if everyone is affected. Information, regardless if it’s during a crisis or in a normal situation, is a public right. It is also the business of the public to access and share reliable and credible information, especially during this era of fake news.