Okay, so I’m selfish. There. I’ve said it.
The only reason I don’t want the Cebu City Government to shut down the Cebu City Sports Center is because I don’t want to go somewhere else to exercise.
But I don’t see how the facility can effectively serve as a mega quarantine center if the acting mayor’s plan pushes through.
Where will they put all the patients? On the field where they are at the mercy of the elements? Or will they be billeted in some of the classrooms inside the building? If that’s the case, why not take advantage of all the empty classrooms in the adjacent schools? Unless they’re thinking of making them sleep on the bleachers like what several police officers did for several months when they were here to help enforce health and social measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19).
Again, I understand that city officials and the Inter-Agency Task Force-Visayas are worried about the recent rise in Covid cases. They have every right to be. However, I think they’re going about it the wrong way.
They know what’s causing it. The ease in restrictions means more people are once again mobile. Majority of them are out there trying to make a living so they can put food on their table. Others just want the freedom to be up and about after more than a year of being cooped up inside their houses. Then there are those who completely ignore the existing protocol that has proven to be successful in keeping Cebu’s Covid cases down in the last few months despite the spike in the beginning of this year.
Authorities should go after them. In other words, don’t wait until people contract the disease. Prevent them from getting it instead.
Of course, that’s easier said than done. To do that, the government will have to impose stricter measures, which the City plans to do. I heard it might re-implement the liquor ban in bars and restaurants and move the curfew one hour earlier to 10 p.m. All fine by me.
In some countries in Europe, they require their citizens to present a “Covid pass” to prove they are fully vaccinated before they can enter establishments like museums, sporting arenas and whatnot.
Why not do something similar here? At least, the government will end up hitting two birds with one stone. Not only will they solve the problem of crowding, they will also force people to actually get vaccinated. Assuming, of course, the City has enough doses to go around.
But that’s for another column.