News Roundup 22 January 2021
Jan 22, 2021 • 4 min Read
2,178 new COVID-19 infections bring Philippines tally to nearly 510,000 | PHILSTAR.COM – The Department of Health confirmed 2,178 new coronavirus cases Friday, bringing to 509,887 the total number of infections in the Philippines. The number of active cases in the country currently stands at 32,031 or 6.3% of the total. Recoveries reached 467,720 after 250 more patients had been declared recovered from the disease. Meanwhile, fatalities due to COVID-19 rose to 10,136 after the DOH registered 20 new deaths.
Will it actually help the economy? Leachon says ‘very risky’ to allow minors to go out | PHILSTAR.COM – A former adviser to the COVID-19 task force questioned its decision to ease age-based restrictions in some areas on account of the economy, calling such logic counterintuitive. The Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases on Thursday decided to allow children ten years old or older to leave their homes in areas under Modified General Community Quarantine (MGCQ) starting February 1. But Dr. Tony Leachon, a health reform advocate and former adviser to the coronavirus task force, on Friday said he could not reconcile such logic. “It is quite counter-intuitive that the IATF would allow kids who are above 10 years old to go out to the malls when they are actually have not allowed kids to have face-to-face interaction in classes,” he told ANC’s “Dateline Philippines.” “I don’t understand why spurring economic growth is a reason to allow kids to go out,” Leachon also said. “You cannot make the economy grow as long as our numbers are up,” he said, referencing the rise in cases due to the post-holiday surge. According to Leachon, deaths are also on the rise with the case fatality at almost 2%, the highest its been since August. “I think they need to understand, as long as we don’t control [coronavirus] transmission and the cases are up, we cannot reopen the economy,” he said. “If you don’t understand that, then you’re part of the problem.”
Banks tighten credit standards as lingering pandemic raises risk aversion | INQUIRER.NET – Increasingly risk averse banks – anticipating a fallout of bad loan this year due to the coronavirus pandemic – are putting higher hurdles for borrowers to clear in the current quarter, a poll conducted by the central bank revealed. According to the quarterly Senior Bank Loan Officers’ Survey, some banks have implemented tighter standards for corporate clients due to a more uncertain economic outlook along with expected deterioration in borrowers’ profiles and profitability of banks’ portfolios, and banks’ lower tolerance for risk. The survey also revealed that, during the current quarter respondent banks are also implementing tighter overall credit standards for household loans for the same reasons. According to the central bank, most respondent banks are seeing net increases in overall loan demand from enterprises associated largely with corporate clients’ higher inventory financing and accounts receivable financing needs, improved economic outlook, and lack of other sources of funds.
Makabayan solon ditches aversion for Americans, asks Biden for help on PH human rights situation | Manila Bulletin – After blaming Americans for a number of ills that have befallen Philippine democracy, a Makabayan lawmaker is now turning to US President Joseph R. Biden Jr. for help in addressing the allegedly worsening human rights situation under the Duterte administration. In a press statement, Bayan Muna Rep. Ferdinand Gaite aired hopes that Biden “would take a stronger position on the human rights situation in the Philippines.” Gaite wants the Biden administration to review its program of military support to the country. “Trump largely ignored this issue and sustained its military aid to the regime amidst issues of rights violations. We hope President Biden would support the enactment of the Philippine Human Rights Act championed last year by Democratic Rep. Susan Wild and 23 other members of the US Congress,” said Gaite. The opposition solon wants Biden to “undo most of Trump’s legacy and to restore American democracy.”
PH share of vaccines from COVAX reduced | Malaya Business Insight – The Philippines’ share of COVID-19 vaccines under the COVAX Facility may benefit only 15 percent to 16 percent of the country’s population, lower than the initial arrangement for 20 percent, or around 40 million free doses, vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr. said yesterday. The reduction was due to high demand and limited supply, said Galvez, chief implementer of the National Task Force against COVID-19. Galvez at the start of the “Laging Handa” public briefing, said the COVAX facility formally approved the rollout of 30 million to 40 million doses of the vaccine to the Philippines. COVAX is a global scheme co-led by the World Health Organization. It aims to deliver at least 2 billion COVID-19 doses across the world this year, with at least 1.3 billion going to poorer countries. Galvez said the vaccine from COVAX is not included in the 148 million doses the country is negotiating and procuring from seven international firms. Since the vaccines from COVAX are not included in the government’s target number of doses, the impact of the reduced allocation for the Philippines would not be much.
