Malacaῆang on Tuesday said President Rodrigo Duterte is not downplaying the COVID-19 pandemic and is merely guaranteeing the recovery of the country from its massive impact.
The clarification from Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque came after the president’s “maliit na bagay (small thing)” remark during his March 15 public address drew flak in social media.
“Hindi po minamaliit ng ating presidente ang ating paghihirap. Ang sinasabi niya, babangon tayo riyan. We will heal as one (The president is not belittling our struggle. He is only saying we will recover. We will heal as one),” Sec. Roque clarified.
“Sinasabi ng presidente ay patuloy naman po ang Pilipinas ay nabubuhay sa kabila ng COVID-19. Siyempre ikinalulungkot natin ang mga nawalan ng trabaho, mga namatay (He was saying the Philippines continues to live amid the COVID-19 [pandemic]. Of course we are saddened by the jobs and lives lost),” he added.
Sec. Roque claimed the country has also been “spared from even more deaths” compared to the experience of rich and more developed countries which have higher budget allocated to their health sector.
“Ang sinasabi lang ng presidente, temporary lang po ‘yan. Hindi po ‘yan forever. Lilipas din po ‘yan (The president is merely saying that it is only temporary, and that it is not forever. That, too, shall pass),” he concluded.
Meanwhile, Malacaῆang said the country is not “back to square one” amid the surge of COVID-19 cases this March despite the implementation of strict quarantine measures which have been in place for more than a year.
“Kung hindi siguro naging vigilant ang ating presidente at IATF (Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases), we would be in a worse position today (If the president and the IATF were not vigilant, we would be in a worse position today),” Roque defended. – AG, PTV News Online
