News Roundup 07 February 2021
Feb 07, 2021 • 4 min Read
DOH adds 1,790 coronavirus cases as tally reaches 537,310 | PHILSTAR.COM – The Department of Health reported 1,790 new cases of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) on Sunday, February 7, bringing the number of total cases to 537,310. Of the total caseload, 26,333 or 4.9% are still classified as active cases, or patients who have neither passed away nor recovered and are still in hospitals and quarantine facilities. The department in its latest case bulletin also reported 70 new deaths, bringing the total death toll to 11,179. Exactly 499,798 have so far recovered after the DOH added 11,388 more recoveries, good for a 93.0% recovery rate.
Robredo: No need to be too defensive on COVID-19 response | PHILSTAR.COM – President Rodrigo Duterte’s administration has not been very gracious in accepting legitimate criticisms over its governance amid the coronavirus pandemic, Vice President Leni Robredo said Sunday. Speaking on her weekly radio show, Robredo took issue with the government’s recent responses to concerns with its coronavirus response, particularly with officials that slam her for making her criticisms known. “That’s always what happens. For me, that’s why these things happen, because there’s no acceptance of shortcomings. If they need to defend themselves, then they should defend themselves. But for me, the way they try to defend themselves is saddening. Because is this really the kind of public servants we have today?” she said in Filipino. “I don’t think we deserve having public servants that are rude and proud to the core. I don’t think we’re bad people for what we’re saying. All of the data and statistics aren’t even made up, they’re always there,” she also said. Over the coronavirus pandemic, the Duterte administration has downplayed or rejected criticisms over its handling of the global pandemic. Officials have also pointed out that other countries are also struggling or have accused government critics of politicking.
2 ex-justices score Parlade anew at SC | INQUIRER.NET – Retired Supreme Court Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio and former Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales have cited another serious threat against civil rights from an Army general who had anchored it this time on the assailed antiterror law. In a four-page manifestation to the Supreme Court on Friday, Carpio, Morales, and other lawyers who had joined them in a petition challenging the constitutionality of the antiterror law said that Lt. Gen. Antonio Parlade Jr. had made “clear threats” against press freedom enshrined in the Bill of Rights when he branded a journalist a rebel propagandist. They said Parlade’s suggestion that Inquirer.net reporter Tetch Torres-Tupas may be liable for “aiding the terrorists by spreading lies” for reporting on allegations of illegal arrest and torture made by two men against soldiers posed a grave danger as the offense carried the penalty of life imprisonment. “[T]he threats’ obvious invasion of protected expressive rights is possible only because the language of the [antiterror law] is vague and overbroad, casting a wide net of possibilities,” according to their manifestation. “Such direct threats engender fear that chills journalists or even citizens from exercising their rights to freedom of expression and freedom of the press,” it said.
Robredo tells supporters: Raise funds for people in need, not for presidential campaign | Manila Bulletin – Instead of launching a fundraiser for her still unsure presidential campaign next year, Vice President Leni Robredo has urged her supporters to raise funds to help those affected by the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic instead. Robredo made the statement after her supporters launched a petition urging her to run for president in 2022 and raising funds for her campaign. In her radio program Sunday, Feb. 7, Robredo said she is thankful for the support she is receiving from her supporters but asked them to not think about the election while the country is grappling with the health crisis. “Appreciative naman ako sa suporta tsaka sa paniniwala ng ating mga kababayan. Sa akin lang, baka yung fundraising ‘wag na muna yun (I appreciate the support and trust given by our people. But I think they should not hold a fundraiser for now),” she said. “Dapat ‘yung 2022 last ‘yun sa isip nating lahat. Baka pwedeng i-channel muna natin ‘yung ating energy sa paghanap ng paraan para makatulong (The 2022 polls should be the last thing in our minds. Perhaps we should channel all our energy in finding ways to help the people),” she added. According to the Vice President, her supporters should raise funds to help those affected by the pandemic.
Photo Source: By www.travelphotology.net – Flickr Calaguas Island, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=24395756
