President Rodrigo Duterte appealed to the public on Monday night to skip the festivities this coming holiday season and apologized for the “curtailment” of some traditions to prevent the transmission of the Coronavirus.
“You avoid it because it is for your own good and for the good of the community and eventually for the good of the country,” he recommended.
President Duterte explained that this is the only time authorities will ask the public to observe the upcoming holiday season with restrictions as a precautionary measure that will primarily benefit the public, not just the government.
“You have had so many Christmas blowouts and parties. Itong kaisa-isa lang (this is the only one), this is one Christmas, the only Christmas maybe that government will interfere in your private affairs,” he stated.
“You might think that this is too much. Government does not control us. Of course, we cannot control you individually if what you do is what you want. The problem is we are preventing you from getting other people sick,” he emphasized.
The “dampened” celebration this year is because the world is “fighting a deadly microbe.”
“Tiis lang kaunti tutal (Just be patient since) there’s a light at the end of the tunnel actually so to speak. Pati iyong ano — iyong there’s a news in the horizon na there’s already vaccines being produced (There is a news in the horizon that there are already vaccines being produced),” he added.
The Department of Health (DOH) has been advising the public to avoid gatherings and to observe physical distancing. Health Secretary Francisco Duque III has even urged the public to limit celebrations to members of household only.
To date, the DOH has recorded 1,400 new confirmed COVID-19 cases on December 8, bringing the tally to 442,785. There are currently 25,325 active cases nationwide. – PTV News Online
