Deaths and debts

LETTERS FROM THE AGNO

March L. Fianza

BAGUIO CITY -- The world noticed that the countryside that is unaffected so much by the comforts of modern living has been free from the coronavirus. Proof of this is the absence of COVID-19 positive patients.

That makes these remote natural resorts perfect quarantine sanctuaries that have to be secured more, not for outsiders or the itinerant tourist but for the residents. Take the situation of Mtn. Province, Ifugao and municipalities in Kalinga.

On TV, an elderly woman claimed that the reason for not having the deadly virus in their communities in Mountain Province was due to “tengao”, an indigenous cultural practice.

It is an indigenous practice of a lockdown that prevented people from moving around the community, the farms and ricefields before planting season and after harvest.

Other places in the Cordillera practice their own rituals. In the Ibaloy areas of Southern Benguet, they practice the “diyaw” similar to the “tengao” in the north of the Cordillera.

Such practices have been in place since time immemorial and do not go against the protocols being enforced by the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases. These old rituals reflect President Duterte’s order to quarantine ourselves. So there, we do not hear about COVID-19 deaths in these remote barrios.

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As we write, President Duterte extended until May 15, 2020 the ECQ (enhanced community quarantine) in 13 areas nationwide, including Benguet which includes Baguio City, after IATF recommended a modified lockdown to be imposed in these areas.

I understand that what the IATF is saying is that lifting of any form of ECQ in low-risk areas after May 15 will depend on the number of COVID cases.

Under the same resolution, non-leisure stores in malls and shopping centers may partially open; public transportation may operate at a reduced capacity; colleges and universities may continue classes; priority and essential construction projects may resume; and airports and seaports may operate to allow the movement of goods.

However, what is more important from the view of lawmakers is the reprioritization of the Social Amelioration Program (SAP) to the real beneficiaries unable to provide for their families due to the lockdown.

Last week, the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) announced that it has given almost ₱200 billion to the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) for distribution to over 18 million low-income families during the ECQ.

The President assured the citizenry that the money is there while his financial managers said, financial institutions such as ADB and World Bank have approved loans to avoid bankruptcy. That means, additional debts that will be shouldered by generations to come.  

Under RA 11469 or the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act, the SAP shall provide the 18 million households a monthly allowance of between ₱5,000 to ₱8,000 for up to two months.

The assistance already includes the 4.4 million “poorest of the poor” families who currently receive monthly allowances under the “4Ps” (Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program) of the DSWD.

It has been a month since the IATF talked about SAP, but millions of beneficiaries have yet to receive their financial assistance. Last week, Senator Ralph Recto estimated that only about 25 per cent or about 4.5 million of the 18 million family-beneficiaries received their share.

If so, then the LGUs concerned and the DSWD have to move faster to distribute 75 per cent of the fund to around 13 million more families. Sen. Recto stressed that distributing the SAP money faster will definitely be the solution to avoiding social unrest, and will also stop authorities from deploying the military in our streets.

The distribution of financial aid to the citizenry was slow so that it was overtaken by events. Instead of the special amelioration fund or SAF, what was distributed was another form of SAF which is the Special Action Force of the PNP.  

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            With the number of deaths due to a killer called coronavirus, the world does not need more deaths caused by trigger-happy policemen. What was feared about the stricter enforcement of health protocols at police checkpoints during the enhanced community quarantine due to the COVID-19 pandemic has just happened.

            Corporal Winston Ragos, an ex-army officer who was legally discharged from service because of a mental illness was shot dead by Quezon City Police MSgt. Daniel Florendo last Tuesday, April 21 at Barangay Putik.

The mother showed proof of medical records that her son has PTSD (post traumatic syndrome disease) after being assigned in Marawi, further showing drug prescriptions for mentally ill patients. Witnesses maintained that the ex-soldier was unarmed when he was shot twice.

            An unidentified witness claimed that Ragos only had a bag and not a gun, contrary to the official police account that says the victim was armed with a caliber .38 pistol.

QC police said the ex-army man threatened and shouted at the policemen at a checkpoint which provoked one of them to draw his firearm and confront him.

The same witness said people nearby told the policemen that Ragos was mentally disturbed and pleaded to them not to shoot him, but police reports that apparently supported Florendo said it was the latter’s judgment call. The family of Ragos who were shocked wished Florendo could have just aimed at Ragos’ legs.

Judging the unfortunate incident from CCTV footages, and considering the statements of witnesses, the intention to kill Ragos was there. The mentally challenged Ragos was alone while Florendo was with at least three police trainees.

Florendo was not satisfied with shooting Ragos once, so he shot  his target for a second time to kill him. There was no mindset to maim Ragos or make him incapable of attacking them.

When one of the policemen was informed about Ragos’ mental condition, the policeman replied, “huwag kayong makikialam, papatayin namin yan!”

The Criminal Investigation and Detection Unit, and the District Internal Affairs Service of the Quezon City Police are ready to file criminal and administrative cases against Florendo after an investigation.

But that will not bring back the life of Ragos, and will not even clean the PNP ranks of misfits and incompetent law enforcers, unqualified to make good judgment calls that are supposed to protect the citizenry and not to put them at risk. For as long as there are many Florendos, this world will always see many Ragoses as victims.