News Roundup 15 November 2020
Nov 15, 2020 • 3 min Read
Coronavirus cases in the Philippines breach 407,000; DOH adds 11,290 recoveries | PHILSTAR.COM – Health authorities recorded 11,290 more coronavirus recoveries on Sunday, to go with 1,530 more infections, bringing the national caseload to 407,838. In its latest case bulletin issued Sunday afternoon, the Department of Health also documented 41 more casualties linked to the new pathogen, bringing the country’s death toll to 7,832. Sunday’s latest mass recovery brings the recovery rate in the Philippines to 92% with 374,329 total recoveries documented by the health department. Accounting for the deaths and recoveries, there are still 25,677 active cases of COVID-19 in the country as of Sunday afternoon, making up 6.3% of total cases. The day before, health authorities also added 1,650 cases of the coronavirus.
‘Kung gusto may paraan’: VP camp hits Duterte absence amid ‘Ulysses’ | PHILSTAR.COM – Vice President Leni Robredo’s spokesman on Sunday said leaders should be seen and felt in times of crisis in an apparent comment on government’s response to Typhoon Ulysses, which had left many asking for help in submerged provinces. The Duterte administration has found itself at the center of criticism for its handling of twin typhoons to ravage the country in November: Rolly, the world’s strongest this 2020 and Ulysses, with scores dead and millions affected in the Luzon island. Many took to social media to ask about President Rodrigo Duterte’s whereabouts as Ulysses wrecked havoc, which had since turned to Twitter hashtags such as #NasaanAngPangulo. When he finally addressed the public after storm’s battering, he sought to reassure that government was on top of the situation but also remarked that he wanted to “swim” to reach typhoon victims but his security wouldn’t let him. Laywer Barry Gutierrez in the vice president’s weekly radio show made a comparison of the country’s two leaders, with Robredo leading her own office’s response on the ground while Duterte remained in Malacañang. “Sabi nga Ka-Ely, kung talagang gusto may paraan. Pero kung ayaw gawin eh maraming dahilan,” he said. “Kung tatanungin mo ‘yung security sasabihin niyan kung maari ‘wag na [pero] nandoon na sa mismong principal kung tutuloy siya o hindi.” (You know what they say, if there’s a will, there’s a way. But you would have a lot of reasons if you wouldn’t want to. And if you ask your security detail, they would say no but it all depends on the principal if they would push through or not.)
VP Robredo visits flood-hit Cagayan | INQUIRER.NET – Vice President Leni Robredo on Sunday visited and reached out to displaced residents of Cagayan which was hit by massive flooding due to Typhoon Ulysses. In a Twitter post, Robredo said the situation in the province is “so much better.” “We arrived in Cagayan this morning. Our team arrived a few hours earlier with supplies. Situation is so much better. Many areas still flooded but water receded already,” she said. Cagayan has been placed under a state of calamity due to the flooding, which was triggered by the release of water from Magat Dam and heavy siltation of waterways. Nine flood-related deaths have so far been reported in Cagayan.
10,000 workers from Cagayan, Isabela to be given emergency jobs — DOLE | Manila Bulletin – Ten thousand workers in typhoon-hit areas of Isabela and Cagayan are set to benefit from the emergency employment program of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE). Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III on Sunday revealed that they already gave the authority for the hiring of workers under the Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers (TUPAD) program. “We gave Gov. (Manuel) Mamba the authority to hire 5,000 people to clean and tidy up the province of Cagayan,” he said during a press briefing in Tuguegarao, Cagayan. “We also gave the same authority to Gov. (Rodolfo) Albano to hire 5,000 workers in Isabela,” Bello added. The TUPAD is a short-term emergency employment program of the Department of Labor and Employment to mitigate the impact of calamities, disasters and epidemics on workers in the informal economy.
