The struggle for recovery continues as the pandemic spreads throughout the Philippines. COVID-19 has been taking a lot of lives and resources, but more than that, we see a lot of lapses and negligence coming from our government since the country’s first case. More than respiratory disease, the virus resulted in a lot of controversies that have been weighing us down, diminishing our faith in the national goal of “healing as one.” To make things worse, we distance ourselves to prevent infection, yet the demands for productivity led most sectors to resort to online platforms, depriving those without internet access to education and other opportunities. We see the Philippines in an awkward position in this pandemic, especially when our government is planning to implement measures against terrorists as part of national healing. Indeed, we are at the heart of one of the dark times in Philippine history—as we lose sight of the hope of getting through this crisis, or have we?
Experts claim that we are experiencing the first wave of the pandemic, and we see the Philippines at the moment like it has been hit by a tsunami. It is true that we have been significantly impacted by our government’s mistakes and have been mourning for losses for three heavy months now. Despite the negative situation of our status quo, we have been urged to spread positivity for our fellow Filipinos—front liners helping the sick, authorities tending to a public utility in local areas, businesses providing our essentials in our daily lives, and volunteers helping those in need even at the expense of their own health. Let us dwell on the progress that we have been doing, more than people who have been making the situation worse. COVID-19 challenged us on to what extent the Filipino spirit shall last— a spirit that always fights and sees the silver lining even when everything seems lackluster. This spirit has been prevalent in social media, as we see the brighter side of the mistakes done by our government by ridiculing most of the iconic issues like the call for mass testing, clown statements made by political icons, and laxity of most people in protocols through forms of meme and jokes. This model proves how citizens have a role as vital as the government during the pandemic.
A country in crisis have duties to be fulfilled, and let us take part in these responsibilities to aid national healing by valuing health, obeying the right protocols, and voicing our thoughts against ridiculous government actions.
We are all aware that life after the pandemic will never be the same as the normal lives we used to enjoy. Despite that, let us approach the “new normal” in hopes of being able to maximize the aftermath of the pandemic to its fullest—leaving no one behind as we slowly heal our nation. Let us believe that no matter how the situation looks currently, we still taking our steps towards our aspired goal. In a nutshell, no crisis will stop us from being the Filipinos who will believe, fight, and hope for what is right.
