Coronavirus Lockdown: Transmitting the Virus is a Crime, Free Cow, and More!

More news about how the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines is being handled by the public and the government.

Bribing people to take the vaccine has reached new levels of weirdness as one Mayor vows to raffle off cows for those who take the jab.

https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/05/27/21/cow-raffle-covid-19-vaccine-san-luis-pampanga

The local government of San Luis town in Pampanga will be raffling off cows to residents who received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine in a move to boost their vaccination program. 

Mayor Jayson Sagum said the raffle will begin in July once vaccine supply picks up.  

(Every end of the month we will raffle off one cow for residents who have been vaccinated.) 

The raffle, he said, will last for 12 months or until June 2022. Residents who had one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine are eligible for the raffle. 

(Don’t be scared, have yourself vaccinated and get the chance to win a cow.) 

That is certainly more of an incentive than a free donut. A cow could be someone's livelihood. One local government is offering free sacks of rice as an incentive while another is offering free houses. The Senate thinks these raffles and incentives to entice people to take the vaccine are a good thing.

https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/news/nation/789279/senators-okay-with-incentives-raffle-for-those-vaccinated-vs-covid-19/story/

Senators on Friday said they are open to the idea of raffles and incentives for those who are vaccinated against COVID-19 as this will encourage more Filipinos to get immunized. 

This after Las Piñas Representative Camille Villar announced an incentive program to her constituents where individuals who already got at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine could win a brand new house and lot as well as groceries and motorcycles. 

Senator Panfilo Lacson said any legal and creative means could be used to encourage more Filipinos to take part in the national immunization program against COVID-19. 

“By all means possible, yes. A chance at winning the lottery and other forms of incentives, and for that matter - any legal means to attract more Filipinos to get themselves vaccinated are good moves by the government, both national and local, and even the private sector to attain herd immunity at the soonest possible time not only for our people's healthy well-being but to make our economy vibrant again and get back our normal lives again,” Lacson said in a text message to reporters.

One thing the government will absolutely not do is tell the public the truth about the vaccines which is that they do not prevent infection. They do not immunize you from catching the virus.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1438186/mindoro-town-mayor-tests-covid-19-positive-after-1st-jab

A mayor of a town in Oriental Mindoro tested positive for COVID-19 days after he got his first dose of a vaccine.

Naujan Mayor Mark Marcos, in a social media post Friday, said he first had an antigen test Tuesday, May 25, and when he tested positive for the virus, he underwent a Reverse Transcription-Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) test on the same day.

The result came out Thursday, May 27, confirming his infection.

“But only my office (at the municipal hall) is on lockdown,” he said in a phone interview Friday morning.

He decided to have a swab test even after he was vaccinated against COVID-19 on May 18 because of a persistent nose congestion. “Before vaccination, my body was in good condition,” he said.

Funny that the brand of vaccine the mayor was given is not mentioned.

Face masks are stupid. They make it hard to breathe and hard to understand people and, according to the New England Journal of Medicine, they function more as a talisman than offering any real protection from the virus. But even worse are face shields which are required inside government buildings and on public transportation. One doctor says it's time for them to go.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1437374/time-to-drop-those-face-shields

The government must now rethink the policy requiring people to wear face shields when leaving their homes, since there is no systematic study proving it has significantly reduced COVID-19 transmission, according to some doctors. 

“What do all countries that have controlled COVID have in common? They never required face shields,” Dr. Gideon Lasco, a medical anthropologist, said in a recent post on social media. 

“It’s time to end the Philippines’ baseless, inconvenient, and environmentally harmful face shield mandate, especially in outdoor spaces where there’s zero evidence of its benefit,” said Lasco, who also writes a column in the Inquirer. 

But according to Dr. Edsel Salvana, a government technical adviser and infectious diseases expert, Filipino doctors have calculated that wearing both mask and shield, plus social distancing, is 90-percent effective in preventing COVID-19 transmission. 

“Unfortunately, [there is] still only about 30 percent compliance [with the requirement to put on] face shields,” Salvana said on Wednesday. 

Salvana disagreed with Lasco and Co, saying that in countries where people never used face shields—like the United States, France, United Kingdom, Spain, and Portugal — COVID-19 deaths “are 10 times (that in Philippines) per million population.” 

To say that only the Philippines required face shields and other countries did not was “a nonsensical argument,” Salvana said. 

Peru has also made face shields mandatory in indoor public places. 

In the US, studies conducted at Wayne State University School of Medicine in Detroit, Michigan, showed that the use of both plastic face shields and surgical masks provided the best protection against infection, but that combining the two made little difference over the use of masks alone.

It's interesting that Dr. Salvana would appeal to Peru cornering face shields. Recently Peru has mandated people wear two masks in potentially crowded areas. Is double masking in the future for the Philippines? 

One research at the OCTA is imploring the government to relax health protocols for those who have been vaccinated. However, the government is not inclined to relax health protocols at all in the near future. In fact, Duterte has declared transmitting the virus is illegal and that he will find a way to arrest you for doing so.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1437406/duterte-wants-mass-gatherers-to-be-jailed

“Most of you are committing a crime because you know that after gathering, after swimming together, a lot of you will get positive for COVID-19,” he said.

“It seems you’re ignoring the government’s plea and it’s criminal for you to get COVID-19 and pass it on to another innocent person. It is really a crime,” he continued, speaking partly in Filipino. “I will look for a suitable law because you are now forcing my hand to get into this thing and control it.”

If he has to "look for a suitable law" then obviously there is no law against transmitting the virus. And how would they prove that anyway? It's more ridiculous bluster from Duterte.

Actor Robin Padilla posted a video of himself administering a COVID swab. DOH Secretary Duque says such a test is not acceptable as it could produce false results.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1437592/no-to-self-swabbing-says-duque-after-actors-viral-clip

Health Secretary Francisco Duque III on Thursday said performing self-swabbing for COVID-19 is not advisable since it may render the results questionable. 

He made the remark after actor Robin Padilla shared a video of him conducting a COVID-19 swab test by himself.

Duque said there are protocols and standards that are being followed in conducting swab tests.

(You can’t do it on yourself because the results will be questionable.) 

In his post, Padilla said he was forced to conduct the swab test on himself due to the alleged unavailability of a healthcare worker.

Why would one even consider administering this test on themselves?

The USA is donating Moderna and AstraZeneca vaccines next month according to the Philippines' ambassador to the USA. He also says the US and the PHL are seeking to partner in making vaccines locally.

https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/news/nation/789354/philippines-us-seek-partnership-in-vaccine-manufacturing-distribution/story/

The Philippines and the United States are seeking possible cooperation in manufacturing and distribution of COVID-19 vaccines in the country in a bid to speed up local access to the crucial jabs against the deadly viral infection, Manila's envoy to Washington said.

Ambassador Jose Manuel Romualdez, in a statement Saturday, said the COVID-19 pandemic and the limited global supply of vaccines "have magnified the importance of building domestic capacity that would ensure some degree of vaccine self-reliance critical to prepare countries to deal with future pandemics.”

Under the proposal discussed in a forum between Philippine and US officials last week, both sides would seek "suitable investment partners" to set up manufacturing hubs in the country.

During the discussion, the Philippines highlighted vaccine development and manufacturing roadmap and international cooperation on technology transfer, capacity-building, and financing. 

The Philippines, with a sluggish vaccination program amid global shortage of the crucial shots, has one of the highest COVID-19 infections in the region. 

DOST Undersecretary for Research and Development Dr. Rowena Cristina Guevara said that in the medium term, the DOST Pharma Center will be reinstituted as “a way to bridge the gap between the academe and the industry for pharma development."

It also intends to establish a Virology and Vaccine Institute of the Philippines through a law, Guevara said.

Setting up the infrastructure to manufacture vaccines will certainly not happen overnight. Until the Philippines can be independent in that regard they will have to buy from or accept gifts from others. Novavax has expressed interest setting up a factory in the Philippines but of course that will be long time from now if it happens.

The DOH says the top reason for vaccine hesitancy in the Philippines is fear of side effects. Tell that to all the Filipinos illegally overstaying in Hong Kong just so they can get vaccinated.

https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/pinoyabroad/news/789426/more-than-1-000-filipinos-illegally-staying-in-hong-kong-to-be-vaccinated-vs-covid-19/story/

More than 1,000 Filipinos overstaying or illegally staying in Hong Kong will be included in the COVID-19 vaccination scheduled in July, according to a report on News TV Live on Saturday. 

They will be among the thousands of illegal immigrants and refugees to be vaccinated, the Hong Kong government said. 

Demand for Sinovac and Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines was not that high among residents, prompting the government to offer the jabs to illegal immigrants and refugees. 

Some of the vaccine doses are set to expire in August. 

Data from the Hong Kong government showed that at least 1,000 Filipinos are overstaying or staying illegally there.

This is actually a very bad article because it does not say definitively that any of those 1,000 people will be getting vaccinated. Right now it's just a potential scenario.

"You are either on the bus or off the bus," says Ken Kesey. The vaccination bus is the bus you want to board to get the vaccine if you live in Taguig.

https://pia.gov.ph/news/articles/1076376

Taguig City has officially launched its Vaccination Bus, a new and innovative way of vaccinating more people against COVID-19.

According to the Taguig Registry for Access and Citizen Engagement (TRACE), the Vaccination Bus is now making its stop around the city to serve as a pop-up vaccination center and get more people to receive their vaccination.

The vaccination bus also aims to target Taguigeños in hard-to-reach areas, vulnerable communities, and those who are unable to personally come to Taguig vaccination hubs, it added.

It cannot be said that the government is not reaching out to the people the best way it can to take the vaccine. Yet vaccine hesitancy allegedly continues to be an issue. Of course those in charge appear to be doing everything they can to erode confidence in the vaccine's efficacy. Now the people are being told to not get an anti-body test after being vaccinated.

https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2021/06/02/2102597/experts-advise-against-antibody-testing-after-vaccination

Getting antibody tests after getting a COVID-19 vaccine is not advisable, medical experts said, as they typically do not paint a full picture of immunity against the coronavirus and may even cause unnecessary worry over the effectiveness of the shot.

“The immune system is amazingly sophisticated. So one measurement cannot totally measure the entire immune response of your immune system to the COVID virus,” de Vera said during the briefing to lawmakers.

She said that there are still no studies which suggest how many antibodies a person needs to be considered to be protected against COVID-19.

She added that while they will also use antibody tests in their study to check if people involved have developed an immune response, they will also be looking at the cellular response and will monitor study participants to check if they develop COVID-19.

I do not know why anyone would take such a test but the reasons given not to do so tell the public that the vaccine is simply not effective as immunity is not guaranteed. But one does not need a test to know that. There have been several reported cases of people getting vaccinated and still getting infected. Those who are hesitant about the vaccine are hesitant for good reason.