🇮🇳 Between India and the Philippines

Today's weekday briefing is somewhat about India but is actually about the Philippines. A new travel ban is called, global comparisons are made, numbers are cherry-picked and vaccines trickling in.

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PHILSTAR.COM’S MORNING NEWSLETTER By Camille Diola Good morning. Today's weekday briefing is somewhat about India but is actually about the Philippines. A new travel ban is called, global comparisons are made, numbers are cherry-picked and vaccines are trickling in.

1   To ban or not to ban, that is (always) the question New coronavirus variant B167 detected in India is not yet a "variant of concern," Health Secretary Francisco Duque pointed out while he and the IATF deliberated on whether to impose a ban on travelers from India. “We need to understand that even though this variant is still not of concern, but still under investigation based on World Health Organization’s classification, we need to be careful,” DOH spokesperson Rosario Vergeire said. The ban on incoming travelers from India was announced, lasting for two weeks from April 29 to May 14. The call was made earlier than similar ones last year.   A stricter screening of passports at immigration will be observed to review arrivals' travel history. AFP/Tauseef Mustafa A year into the pandemic and the government's top officials have drawn no apparent protocols yet on travel and flight bans for swift decision-making, one senator said, that is, a set criteria for imposing it, duration and scope. Health authorities blamed the new variants* from overseas and a local mutation for the doubling, even tripling, of COVID-19 infections in the Philippines.   This was after delayed and wavering* imposition of travel bans since a deadly coronavirus strain then known as "2019-nCoV" was reported in other countries in early 2020. Entry restrictions also covered more than a few exceptions.   In December last year, miscommunication between executive agencies* over a broader travel ban to keep out the new variants forced airlines to call the shots instead. It also lasted for only 14 days.   2   Don't compare, they said. We are better, they also said. The government's publicity engines are in full swing. One narrative being repeated is a comparison of the Philippines' pandemic situation to India's to show we are "faring better." On the surface, India is worse off. A major COVID-19 wave is raging there. It beat the global daily record of 360,000 new infections and a soaring death toll by the hundred thousands. Hospitals and crematoriums are swamped to the point of causing a shortage of medicines, oxygen and even wood, Agence France Presse reports. Are we really better off? While the numbers from India are staggering, comparative and qualified data paint a different image. The Philippines does have fewer infections per 100,000 population at 915 versus India's 1,293.   However, the country's fatality rate, tests conducted and vaccines administered lag behind India.   3   The vaccine scene The new variant reported in India makes me wonder whether the spread of new coronavirus mutations is quicker than our vaccination program. Vaccination has been administered to 240,000 individuals, per the health department's last count. "The government touts that the Philippines is the third country in Southeast Asia in number of doses administered but it fails to say that only around 1% of the population have been vaccinated," Gaea Katreena Cabico reports. Supposed to be delivered tonight is the first batch of Russian-made Sputnik V vaccine. Logistical issues, however, will push back its arrival to next month.   Also seen arriving next month are donated doses of AstraZeneca-Oxford and Pfizer vaccines from the global COVAX facility, additional supplies of Sinovac's CoronaVac and an initial batch of Moderna doses.

HITTING THE MARKET ► Del Monte Philippines files for a massive P44-billion IPO. ► Aboitiz nearly quadruples earnings as pandemic shock dissipates ► Multiplier effect from infrastructure? Lockdowns delayed them, says ADB ► International arrivals declined by 98% in Q1. ► Pagcor sees its contribution to healthcare shrinking anew. ► Electronics makers warn of exit due to CREATE ACT's impact. ► ADB targets lending $3.9 billion to the Philippines this year.

ELSEWHERE ON PHILSTAR.COM Metro Manila and its four nearby provinces will remain under Modified Enhanced Community Quarantine until mid-May, President Rodrigo Duterte announced. "We're not out of the woods yet," OCTA Research says as it backed an extended MECQ. Extending the lockdown would afford the health sector some time to open quarantine facilities, hire additional health workers and expand hospital capacity, fellow Ranjit Rye said. They're still here. At least five China Coast Guard ships have been spotted in several areas in the West Philippine Sea, a government task force reported. A Filipino-American Iraq war veteran has been nominated for a senior post in the US Air Force, the White House announced. The Philippines' Rabiya Mateo leads Miss Universe 2020 surveys. Candidates from India and Brazil, meanwhile, are hit by travel bans. How about Kai Sotto? He has improved a lot but not ready for the NBA, Meralco Bolts coach Norman Black observes. Reuters A Guiness World Record for a Filipino collector who amassed the world's largest collection of fast-food restaurant toys... and then some.   Tweet me your thoughts about today's START or pitch possible topics you'd like us to send out a briefing on. I'd be thrilled to hear from subscribers so don't be shy. 💭 To see the rest of our coverage, visit www.philstar.com. Was this email forwarded to you? Subscribe for free. You received this message because you signed up for Philstar.com's daily newsletter. If you no longer wish to receive our emails, unsubscribe here.