We are saddened by the latest Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey showing hunger among Filipino families at 20.9%
We note that the national mobile survey was conducted July 3-6 when many areas in the country were still under general community quarantine or modified general community quarantine. Many lost their jobs during the pandemic. The resumption of public transportation was calibrated and phased. The economy had only started to open. These factors contributed to the respondents saying the experienced hunger. This is particularly true to the Visayas where hunger incidence, according to the aforesaid survey, was highest at 27.2%. After all, some areas in Cebu province were then under enhanced community quarantine, which is the highest restriction level placed by the national government.
Having said this, the SWS survey underscores the importance of opening the economy and providing livelihood opportunities to our people. We therefore call on our citizens that in order to save the economy and people’s jobs, we first have to save lives by ramping up testing for COVID-19 and observing the minimum public health standards by wearing masks, washing hands and keeping a safe distance.
