Former Vice President and now senatorial aspirant Jejomar C. Binay has cautioned government officials against prematurely allowing more people outdoors, as health officials report a downtrend in Covid-19 cases.
Binay said government should learn from the premature loosening of restrictions at around this time last year.
“We were hit by a surge a few months after, even worse than the surge last year. And it is the people who suffered the most,” he said.
“They should be cautious. They should be prepared and they should be certain. It is better to be cautious now, than sorry later,” he said in Filipino.
The former vice president said while cases are declining and more people are vaccinated now than last year, vaccine hesitancy remains high in the provinces. They also lack access to vaccines, he said.
Binay added that hospital administrators have said they are not feeling the downtrend as their facilities remain full. The situation is aggravated by the continuing departure of nurses and health workers.
Binay said government should now shift its spending priorities to public health, rather than infrastructure and the dolomite beach on Roxas Boulevard.
“This should be the time to strengthen our public health system as a defense against any future surge in Covid cases, or future pandemics,” he said.
“But instead, government would rather spend more money on roads and the domolite beach than hospitals, medicines, and benefits for health workers. It’s about time we rethink our priorities,” he added.