The World Health Organization (WHO) has urged the mass production and use of testing kits as a basic necessity in combating the pandemic, yet even the DOH on March 20 felt that there was “no need for mass testing yet,” a reminder of how they sorely misread the situation. or “undisciplined” citizens as responsible for the ensuing problems. Flood is inevitable; the problem is made worse because garbage dumping in the river is a habit practiced by many Filipinos. Poverty is a major social problem in the Philippines with 21.6 percent of the Filipino population earning an income below the poverty line, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority. The History of the United States' Golden Presidential Dollars, How the COVID-19 Pandemic Has Changed Schools and Education in Lasting Ways. The Filipinos love politics so much that every political gathering, especially if done during elections, becomes a festive occasion, a carnival of sort. The arrests occurred just over a week after Duterte granted himself emergency powers to deal with the pandemic. But each barangay has only been allotted around 400 slots for the SAP. People are lining up under the heat of the summer sun desperate for assistance. Filipino society and government tend to ignore their relationships to the area's ecology, disregarding the massive impacts of solid waste, water and air pollution on agriculture and health. With a slashed budget for disease surveillance and epidemiology for 2020, contact tracing was increasingly difficult in Metro Manila for example, one of the world’s most densely populated cities.”. Strict compliance with the ECQ is ordered for all citizens, with the exception of frontline professionals, until at least May 15. After analyzing government data, mathematics professor Lex Muga hopes that the target can be achieved but explained that “community transmission has not stopped. These five megatrends present major global threats for planet Earth — problems that must be solved if the world is to remain a supportive habitat for humans and other species. Since the lockdown went into effect, he has peddled the narrative of. To deal with the inadequacies, Congress’ Makabayan (Patriotic) bloc, composed of several opposition parties, has forwarded a bill to expand the SAP in the hopes of reaching out to more Filipinos in need. Asia, Pacific While Singapore, Taiwan, Vietnam, and Hong Kong took the early initiative on travel restrictions and emergency measures, the Philippines was noticeably late to follow suit. What Does George Soros' Open Society Foundations Network Fund? The Philippines has many, many problems. A presidential election in Kyrgyzstan and a parliamentary election in Kazakhstan kick off 2021 in Central Asia. A major problem that comes with the dump sites is the toxic liquid called leachate that seeps into the soil, and most of the time is released unfiltered into the river system and the groundwater – a source of our drinking water. It … On top of deploying thousands of police and soldiers throughout the archipelago to enforce the ECQ, Duterte has on two occasions threatened the public with all-out martial law. , attributed to a reluctance to upset relations with China. for Us. Asia, Asia Rate: Select rating Give Problems and Solutions 1/5 Give Problems and Solutions 2/5 Give Problems and Solutions 3/5 Give Problems and Solutions 4/5 Give Problems and Solutions 5/5 What Are the Steps of Presidential Impeachment? The Philippine government has been boasting that as early as March 16, they had the gumption to implement a lockdown in major cities and provinces in response to the unfolding COVID-19 pandemic. The announcement comes as confirmed COVID-19 infections continue to spike across the archipelago. The incident summarily reflected the handling of grievances by the authorities during the lockdown. In the 1970s, Philippines was touted the prima donna among world timber exporters. The future of U.S.-ROK relations depends on the United States understanding the priorities of South Korea’s now-dominant liberals. The numbers are in: The past decade has been the warmest in recorded history. 5 million Lack access to safe water. With the 12th largest population and the 43rd largest economy in the world, the Philippines certainly has the scope for development. Former DSWD chief and now of the broad network CURE COVID (Citizen’s Urgent Response to End COVID-19) Judy Taguiwalo criticized the use of an outdated census to guide the state’s relief effort. In this May 11, 2020, photo provided by the Malacanang Presidential Photographers Division, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, wearing a mask, talks to cabinet officials during a meeting at the Malacanang presidential palace in Manila, Philippines. Indeed, our entire ecosystem is at risk: 1 million animal and … Money, Tokyo Arrests have also extended to anyone caught criticizing the administration’s perceived failures during the pandemic. With more than 100 million people currently living in the Philippines, it is ranked as the 12thmost populous country in the world. With a slashed budget for disease surveillance and epidemiology for 2020, contact tracing was increasingly difficult in Metro Manila for example, one of the world’s most densely populated cities.”, Since the start of the pandemic, China has maintained a favorable position in the Duterte administration’s eyes. The group’s secretary general Cristina Palabay said, “The Duterte government and its minions [are] exploiting quarantine measures to harass, vilify, and rabidly arrest — even kill — activists. Highlights of the April 2020 Labor Force Survey a. But each barangay has only been allotted around 400 slots for the SAP. In the last week of March, Duterte announced a larger economic relief package of nearly $4 billion, primarily for low-income families, dubbed the Social Amelioration Program (SAP). In 2020, growth is expected to level out at 6.6 percent. View, About Guilty or not for exacerbating the suffering of Filipinos in 2020, Duterte is facing potentially tougher challenges in 2021. But there are conditions, such as mass testing. One way to solve this is to address the manufacturers and convince them to use fewer toxic materials from the start. Caucasian student standing in classroom. Asia, South The eruption was the first major eruption of Taal since 1977. Now more than ever access to safe water is critical to the health of families in the Philippines. Does the Joko Widodo government have nuclear aspirations? Those who are helping the poor are being put in jail.”. In September 2017, the Philippine government voted to reduce the annual budget of the country's Commission on Human Rights, which investigates suspicious killings and drug-related legal violations, to $20. Since the lockdown went into effect, he has peddled the narrative of pasaways or “undisciplined” citizens as responsible for the ensuing problems. Agriculture was and will always be one of the most important occupations since it is responsible for feeding the world and providing sustenance. The unemployment rate is 2.78 percent (2017 estimate). The primary crops are palay (rice), corn, sugar cane, fruit, root crops, vegetables and trees (for rubber). The negative trade is heavy and only counterbalanced by the service account surplus. But a few days earlier, government leaders were touting Philippine generosity in aiding China with a donation of masks worth $1.4 million that were shipped to Wuhan. China’s Foreign Ministry hit a group of outgoing officials, including Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, with sanctions. 5 Major Problems of Agriculture and their Solutions. With no available sources of income and virtually nonexistent savings, many homeless and slum dwellers bore the brunt of the ECQ. Environmental issues are a warning of the upcoming disaster. Get briefed on the story of the week, and developing stories to watch across the Asia-Pacific. Another cause of poverty in the Philippines stems from a mainly Catholic society that does little family planning. Gulf states like Bahrain and the UAE are using a Chinese-made COVID-19 vaccine, highlighting a new type of cooperation with China. Water pollution is a major problem in the Philippines. Duterte ordered a travel ban only for passengers coming from Wuhan, China specifically on January 31, a day after the first case of COVID-19 was confirmed in the Philippines. A week later, the government announced its initial emergency response package to the virus, totaling $535 million. The president of PDP-Laban (Partido Demokratiko Pilipino–Lakas ng Bayan), Duterte’s party, Senator Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III, was among the legislators who tested positive for COVID-19. Environmental problems in the Philippines Saving precious remains There are few signs today of the Philippines' once sprawling rainforests. The incident has warranted no probe nor sanction from the authorities. A few days later, the ban was expanded to the entirety of China, with the delay, as affirmed by Department of Health (DOH) chief. The decline in poverty in the Philippines is slower than that of other nations in the region, and for those who depend on farming and fishing for income, economic trends keep them poor, largely due to misuse of natural resources. In fact, the Philippines is getting more corrupt under Duterte, dropping 13 notches in the 2017 Corruption Index published recently by Transparency International. Has he finally met his match in India's farmers? The lack of education of Filipinos living in the slum areas in major cities of the country is the void that keeps the gap between the rich and the poor. The Philippines scored 35 out of 100, and the evaluators noted that any country with a score below 50 had a serious corruption problem, according to The Philippine Star. The favorable view of Trump’s policy combined with a pessimism of Biden as it relates to Japan is both unfounded and misguided. December 15, 2020 Pantone Announces Ultimate Gray and Illuminate as Color of the Year 2021. However, due to modernization and the ever-increasing population, agriculture is facing some hurdles lately. Corruption, poverty and human rights issues are three of the major social issues facing the Philippines in 2017. Moreover, money for logging supported candidates during election campaigns.” In the past, forest resources helped fuel the country’s economy. With a growing trend in human population, it is hoped that the country's marine environment will not suffer the same fate. My orders are to the police and military, as well as village officials, if there is any trouble, or occasions where there’s violence and your lives are in danger: shoot them dead.”. Plagued by chronic procedural problems in the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), there are constant complaints of the SAP not reaching its intended beneficiaries and the allocations per town being far too small to do much good. A full month passed before Duterte officially declared the country in a “State of Public Health Emergency” on March 9, five days before the number of confirmed COVID 19 patients breached the 100 mark. Law enforcement agencies that are often coerced or bribed to do the government's bidding do not effectively enforce the laws. They lack access to life’s most critical resource – water. The backlash facing Filipinos now and after the quarantine is quite a distressing picture. He had a message for anyone who intended to replicate the behavior of the San Roque residents: “I will not hesitate. Read the most pressing issues, current events, and good news in the Philippines! Located in Southeast Asia, the Republic of the Philippines comprises 7,107 islands. At a police press briefing in early April, arrests were shown to have spiked during the quarantine, with the cops nabbing an average of more than a thousand people per day nationwide. 45% of Philippines’ urban population lives in informal settlements with already weak infrastructure and are extremely vulnerable to flooding and typhoons. Police have begun to target relief workers and even people posting unflattering opinions about Duterte online. Filipinos are having a hard time surviving in such difficult conditions, and more and more are falling into extreme poverty. A Deadly and Disastrous 2020 for the Philippines By Mong Palatino Guilty or not for exacerbating the suffering of Filipinos in 2020, Duterte is facing potentially tougher challenges in 2021. The country has a high maternal and newborn mortality rate, and a high fertility rate. Import-Export Imbalance: Among the many economic problems faced by the Philippines, one is the imbalance of imports and exports. The Image Bank/Eternity in an Instant/Getty Images. A pervasive pro-Japan bias in the U.S. has blinded Americans to the dangers of Japan’s far-right leaders – and reinforced enmity with China. What’s worse, instead of easing the overall burden that the virus unleashed on the country, it seems the last resort lockdown itself added to a plethora of problems without adequately addressing the primary crisis at hand: ensuring public health and safety. It is one of the major contributory factors that has caused the Philippines to remain as a third world country, aside from corruption in government. Going to every door also requires a universal approach. Taking his cue, the police declared they will stop issuing warnings and will simply arrest even low-level violators of the quarantine rules. Deadly wildfires including those affecting Australia, hurricanes, extreme weather events, and climate-influenced migration and hunger in many parts of the world are now regular occurrences. Problems and solutions on your civil registry documents. Lunzaga adds, “We have four barangays (towns) in the Pandi municipality, each with more than a thousand poor families. The Philippines is hit with an average of 20 typhoons a year. Out of these, 2.65 million were unemployed. Finding the balance between public health and reviving the economy has been fraught with dilemmas. The emergence of a much more contagious variant of COVID-19 comes as Australia rolls out vaccines. Doctor Josh San Pedro, a co-convener of the Coalition of People’s Right to Health (CPRH), explained to The Diplomat that “health authorities may have been complacent, as it was only in mid-March that significant improvements were made to testing capacity, despite locally-made kits being ready as early as February. on March 20 felt that there was “no need for mass testing yet,” a reminder of how they sorely misread the situation. The study details the progress to date in Honduran infrastructure sectors, identifying the principal problems that exist and outlining a strategy for their solution. ... 2020, the Department of Tourism announced the 13 hotels that are now allowed to operate for a staycation in the National Capital Region which is currently under the General Community Quarantine. Prominent human rights group KARAPATAN slammed the mass arrests, saying the regime should refocus its efforts. India finally has an investor-friendly image after almost a decade and should strive to maintain that. As of writing, only 0.1 percent of the population has been tested. Going to every door also requires a universal approach. Ice caps are melting, sea levels are rising, and the very survival of island nations is being threatened. In the immediate aftermath of the lockdown, poor Filipinos especially were distraught by the prospect of contending with hunger. 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