ONE year in a half and counting. It angers many people on how the crisis situation brought about by the pandemic is being handled by President Rodrigo Duterte via his created Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF). It is the unvarnished truth based on the varied reactions on what was pointed by well meaning friends on what I recently posted on my Facebook wall.
I will quote what I posted: I have several friends coming from abroad who are airing legitimate grievance/complaint. Why are they required 10 days quarantine in hotels despite the fact they’re already fully vaccinated? I am telling here the story of my friend Martin Vitug together with the four members of his family. He went to the United States early last week and was in New York after the long travel. No hassle at the airport there in the US. People weren’t even wearing masks, according to Martin.
The same day he and his family members went to a CVS pharmacy store and again no hassle they were only asked what vaccine they prefer. Ganoon kasali. Unlike here in our country, ang daming tse tse bureche. His plan is to get their second dose before their flight back home but was informed that the family will have to be quarantined for ten days in a hotel of their choice and can’t share rooms. The return flight will land at the Clark International Airport.
He is apprehensive to book his family to a two star hotels outside of the Clark Freeport. Maybe, just maybe because of sanitary reasons. So his other option is to billet them to any of the four star hotels inside Clark. Hotel rooms may range from P8 thousand to P10K excluding meals. People eat three times a day, so if you include the cost of the meals it might add up to P10 per pax. Let’s make multiplication now. The sum total will add up to half million pesos.
From my friend Lito Polintan: The cost of travel baloon to every returning residents due to the hotel quarantine. From Rolando Agustin: IATF has the most out of this world policies. From Zaldy P.Alegre: So stupid system. From PIO Reign: Isa pa hindi ko maintindihan sa 10 days quarantine ng IATF you get swab on the 7th day,why wait for another 3 days if you test negative, Bakit hindi ka pa release on the 8th day. That’s another 2 days you can save on the hotel and 2 days more na maka kasama ang family ng returning residents. There are more angry comments. Sorry for lack of space.
This pandemic changed everything overnight. When government decreed this is the new normal, it is not normal. The thing we were accustomed doing before Covid 19 dramatically changed. How could you say it is normal when you can’t even seat beside your wife when dining in a restaurant but you share the same bed once you get home. The family is bundled on a sofa on the living room watching television but cannot be in one big room in a hotel while on quarantine for ten days on their return home. Aside from saving some money, they could enjoy togetherness and not bored compared to when they are holed up in separate rooms. The above observations are points to ponder for the IATF people.