Did you read about the public advisory that the Department of Health (DOH) issued on the celebration of Eid al-Fitr?
I don’t know about you, but I thought it was unnecessary and uncalled for. After all, our Muslim brothers and sisters have been living among us since the coronavirus pandemic broke out at the end of March last year. They know what’s going on.
I’m pretty sure they have a fine grasp of what to do and what not to do amid the ongoing health crisis. Don’t we all?
It’s not like the government has not been drumming quarantine protocols into our heads day in and day out for the last 13 months or so.
We know the drill.
When outside, don’t forget to put on a mask; otherwise, you could get penalized. If you’re in Cebu City, that is. You see, the Provincial Government has done away with the fine because it believes it doesn’t help. It makes more sense to hand a mask to someone who isn’t wearing one instead of apprehending that person and then making that person pay or do community service. I mean, why add to the misery?
And don’t forget the face shield. Which makes me wonder. Are we the only country in the world that requires both mask and face shield when entering establishments and boarding public transportation? Isn’t having both on a tad stifling?
So I guess a group of people just got together and decided that a face shield on top of a mask would offer better protection against the disease. I don’t mind either one, but both? What’s next? They want us to cover our head so only our eyes will be visible?
Anyway, I actually don’t mind the physical distancing bit. You see, I don’t feel comfortable when someone gets up close and personal, especially if that someone is a stranger. My instinct is to instantly take a step back when someone approaches, which has insulted a lot of people in the past. Over the years, though, I’ve learned to accept and live with the fact that Filipinos are natural huddlers.
So when the government imposed the one-meter thingy, imagine my relief. Finally, I thought, people now have no choice but to respect my personal space. And it’s a good thing too. I really don’t need to know what you had for breakfast or lunch. Or that a rat had crawled into your mouth and had died there. Really.
It’s not that I’m a snob or that this column is about my personal preferences. Because it’s not. It’s about the public advisory. Then I remembered that the DOH issued something similar when the Christmas holiday approached. Apparently, it’s SOP. And it turns out that this column is actually about me and my penchant for ranting.
Although, come to think of it, the agency does need to remind the general public, not just Muslims, about the observance of minimum health standards. It seems we live in a nation that easily forgets.