Ilonggos unite vs COVID-19

By Alex P. Vidal

“One of the primary purposes of civilization – and certainly its primary strength – is the guarantee that family life can flourish in unity, peace, and order.” —Robert Kennedy

BY being always available and visible in the public, Iloilo officials led by Iloilo Governor Arthur “Toto” Defensor Jr. and Iloilo City Mayor Geronimo “Jerry” Treñas are sending a buoyant message to the Ilonggos that “we are on top of the situation and with your help and cooperation, we can surmount this crisis.”

It’s in times of crisis and calamities that the leadership and worthiness of our leaders are scrutinized and best tested.

Novel coronavirus or COVID-19 has laid low the Ilonggo populace, just like other places all over the globe, by an enemy too small to be seen.

There seems to be a a sudden resignation and fatalism in the air even as despair unrelieved by even glimmers of hope befouls social media and traditional media alike.

All of a sudden, the scourge of the coronavirus strikes many of Ilonggos as well as people caught flat-footed around the world as something supernatural.

For the Ilonggos, however, the show of unity is heart-warming and unparalleled.

They know when and how to turn despair into hope by cooperating with the authorities and cajoling others to toe the line using the social media and person-to-person persuasion.

 

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The good thing about the fear and confusion that cascaded in the hearts of many people is that the Ilonggos are now united against the common enemy.

There have been no opposition; no bellyaching; no protest, and nobody criticized or opposed our local officials who sent out stern executive orders (EOs) limiting the movements of warm bodies in the borders.

When Treñas ordered the temporary closure of the famed Iloilo Esplanade in the Iloilo River, nobody complained and everybody cooperated.

The city currently has 16 patients under investigation (PUIs) and 1,097 persons under monitoring (PUMs) for COVID-19.

When the people are facing a cloud of uncertainty and confusion, they need leaders who are intrepid, decisive, firm, and who can assure them everything is being handled efficiently and professionally and that the government is ready to confront the crisis using its full authority, resources, and technical capabilities and otherwise.

Health experts and members of the disaster and coordinating council, the police and the military will work alongside the chief local executives to assuage the nervous public and help the people prepare for the next episode while everyone shakes in their pants but are optimistic there will be light at the end of the tunnel because their leaders are in the forefront helping contain the conflagration.

 

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KNOWLEDGE IS POWER. Instead of spending lots of money on a new desk for our office, let us invest in some salvaged wood and paying a carpenter to make us one to measure–it will have the added advantage of fitting the space exactly.

THE USE OF HAVING TWO EYES. If we look at our room with one eye only, we will find that it looks much flatter than it does with two eyes. With two eyes we can see that the chair is n front of the desk, that the wastebasket is round and that the closet looks deep. Our eyes are set from about two to two and a half inches from each other–measuring from center to center.

WHY WE HAVE EYEBROWS. Our eyebrows serve a good and useful purpose. If we had no eyebrows, the drops of sweat that form on our foreheads when we get warm would run into our eyes.

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two local dailies in Iloilo)