Philippines: Department of Health – Announcement (11.04.2020)

Kenya: Ministry of Foreign Affairs – Press Release on the Situation and Treatment of Kenyans in China (10.04.2020)

Philippines: President Rodrigo Duterte – Executive Order No. 110 – Institutionalizating the Comprehensive Social Benefits Program (07.04.2020)

 

Philippines: City Council, City of Manila – Ordinance No. 8624 (02.04.2020)

Central Bank of Sri Lanka – Appeal to all Sri Lankans and well-wishers living in Sri Lanka and Abroad: An Appeal Made with the Approval of the Cabinet of Ministers (02.04.2020)

Philippines: Anticipate rising rice prices ahead

In these times were living in, the Department of Agriculture or other authorities cannot monitor or control every avenue of the Republic. The President and his associates can issue and ask for the public to follow guidelines. However, this will be hard to follow in the days ahead. As the exports of rice from Vietnam will dwindle. Even as the DA has stockpiled enough for 75 days. There will still be questioned, as the public are on lockdown and people cannot move as they used too.

The Luzon is already under quarantine and under direct lockdown. While Mindanao isn’t under that yet. Still, this will stop the movement of rice and other goods. With this in mind and with the COVID-19 or Coronavirus outbreak. The most likely thing to happen, when the public are not allowed to cross checkpoints and leave their homes. The traders, the farmers and everyone involved will need to be compensated. This will make the process more expensive, as well as the ability to import rice from Vietnam and elsewhere will be harder too. With all of those pieces in mind, the price from farm-gate to the consumer will rise.

The DA can by all means, monitor and challenge the rises of prices. They can send out information about their stockpile and the previously bought stock of rise in 2019. However, now in 2020, as people are living and seeing the spread of virus. The stops, roadblocks and lack of imports will make the prices go up. That is common sense.

The stockpiling which was done is positive. That the DA has stocks for three months of ordinary supply is good. However, the ability to transfer, the ability to get the rice moved will be harder. When the army and police is guarding the barangays and the communities. This will hit it and the ports will not as open as before, because the state has already issued guidelines.

With all this in mind, the prices are most likely rising and the basic commodity of rice will go up. Even if the warning letters comes the way of the DA. They cannot stop the inevitable. This is not just scrupulous traders, but usual tendencies when situations like these transpire. If there becomes shortage in Zambonga Del Sur or del Norte. Expect the prices to sudden rise. That because the rice from the stockpile in Luzon isn’t arriving there. The rice from Davao isn’t crossing Mindanao, because of the social distancing and the authorities are blocking the movement. Which likely could happen too.

Even if the ASEAN partners wants to help, they still got their own neck to consider too in this crisis. COVID-19 is hitting worldwide and therefore, the damage is everywhere. Philippines will be hit like everyone else. In this instance with imports of rice, as Vietnam and Thailand is not doing as much as they did in the past. That will affect the prices and will limit the scope. As well, as the other travel advisory and other measures made across Asian nations in concern of exports an so-on.

The DA and the authorities means well, they are trying to signal positivity in the midst of a crisis. However, initial thoughts from me is that with a crisis like this the prices will rise. Unless, the state decrees the prices. They nationalize all parts the food-chain from the farmer to the consumer. Where every party has a fixed price and therefore the rice is costing a much as they set it to be. If they don’t do that, then the prices will spiral and go up. As the fear, the ability locally and in the Barangay’s can use their means to put it up. Since it is less movement, they can initiate a jump of prices and the national authorities cannot follow-up in all areas.

That is why this will most likely happen. It is a force of nature. Even with a giant stockpile. That stockpile is one place and not made across the Republic. The rural Barangay’s will not get their additional loads of rice quickly. Not in this time. Because, the state and authorities doesn’t have the capacity or ability to move that quick. Therefore, there will be change of prices and costs will go up. They can try to stagnate it, but if they wanted to control it. They should do so on decree and nationalize it. Peace.

Opinion: Illegal trade of pangolins is the cause of this pandemic

Who knew a mammal like pangolins would cause this much pain and suffering. The illegal wild-life traders in Asia would bring these to small locations in Wet-Markets, where they sell wild creatures from all over the globe. So, that the Chinese elites can eat wild animals, which is supposed to bring luck and healing. While they are in closed off locations, where the animal diseases are spreading between the animals and also onto people. This is how we gotten the COVID-19 or Coronavirus, which we know of today.

World Wildlife Fund (WWF) writes this about the Pangolins: “These solitary, primarily nocturnal animals, are easily recognized by their full armor of scales. A startled pangolin will cover its head with its front legs, exposing its scales to any potential predator. If touched or grabbed it will roll up completely into a ball, while the sharp scales on the tail can be used to lash out. Also called scaly anteaters because of their preferred diet, pangolins are increasingly victims of illegal wildlife crime—mainly in Asia and in growing amounts in Africa—for their meat and scales” (WWF – ‘Pangolin’).

In February 2020, the National Geographic had this report: “In China, where pangolins are strictly protected too, the government allows certain clinics and hospitals to sell pangolin scales for medicinal purposes. As of 2016, some 200 Chinese pharmaceutical companies were also allowed to manufacture more than 60 products containing pangolin scales, according to the China Food and Drug Administration’s online database. Officials say scales for medicinal use are distributed from a government stockpile, but China has never clarified how large the country’s stockpile is or where the scales came from. As the Wildlife Justice Commission reports, the medicinal system is likely being used to launder illegally obtained African pangolin scales into China’s legal domestic market” (Rachel Nuwer – ‘Illegal trade in pangolins keeps growing as criminal networks expand’ 11.02.2020, National Geographic).

When you have an issue like this and there is scientist saying the first bearer of the virus hitting the world comes from this mammal. That the pangolins are the ones who first carried it and had it. This is happening because we take the wild-life out of its habitat and put them into wet-markets for sale. Selling wild-life like other commodities and for traditional medicine. Instead of actually having scientific effects of the matter. Where they are then exposing their illnesses to both other animals and human beings too. That is why we’re living through this issue today.

This here should be a lesson to not support illegal wild-life trading. Stop trading of wild-life and in general, if possible let the wild-life live in the habitat they comes from or even be part of their natural surrounding. Not being taken away for their scales or their meat. Which has happen, where they was transported, put into small environment and made it possible for the virus to spread. This the reality and that is why COVID-19 got spread to new areas.

This is not just a Chinese problem. Even if they are the ones with the Wet-Market and the tradition of using pangolins as medicinal. Still, the illegal traders, poachers and the whole chain of people still active. They are ensuring their next check and their profitable transaction, as they know perfectly well, there is big business is selling this mammal to China. The Chinese isn’t alone this, this is also a problem in Vietnam as well. Therefore, it is only becoming evident because the virus started in Wuhan, China.

This here is a warning about the danger of this life-style. The pangolins are not made or living for medicinal exploits, neither healthy to use it in this way. As it causes a pandemic. Which shows they should stay in their habitat and become a commodity. Since, becoming a commodity, they also become a dangerous. A danger the world is now facing.

We can ask ourselves, is it worth risking humanity over transferring wild-life like this? The answer should be no. Not because we’re all green or climate change activists or all the above. However, because we care about the environment and out own well-being. Also, that the nature should run its course and we shouldn’t interfere with it, unless we know the consequences of our actions.

So, we now know what happens … and therefore, should stop the trading of pangolins, indefinitely. Peace.

Maldives: Temporary suspension of on-arrival visa to Maldives (25.03.2020)

Opinion: World Bank shouldn’t punish countries with a revamped SAPs

Countries will need to implement structural reforms to help shorten the time to recovery and create confidence that the recovery can be strong. For those countries that have excessive regulations, subsidies, licensing regimes, trade protection or litigiousness as obstacles, we will work with them to foster markets, choice and faster growth prospects during the recovery“ (Remarks by World Bank Group President David Malpass on G20 Finance Ministers Conference Call on COVID-19, 23.03.2020).

It is like the head of the World Bank didn’t learn anything from the past. His just saying he will re-issue old programs, which wasn’t effective. Unless, his earning his fortunes from the “Washington Consensus”. Because, instead of being able to make functional states, these states who are already in the dire need of loans and grants. Now, would need the IMF and WB if they got into a new period of Structural Adjustment Programs (SAPs). Instead of trying to rebuild and actually make them work. His instead dismantling the institutions they do have and lack of fiscal support to build more.

This is reckless and irresponsible. It is disrespectful and a disgrace. That the World Bank didn’t learn from its mistakes and the reason for the peril of plenty of states. Since they drank the kool-aid and followed the plans of the past. Since they needed the funds and grants to be able to function as it was. Nevertheless, we needs to bring back more ills and more weakening of states, because that is how you create growth. More privatization and more elitism. Since, that is the medicine to the poverty and lack of social security. This is what I read from the man.

This is the lesson he never got, maybe because it didn’t hit home:

The past two decades of World Bank and IMF structural adjustment in Africa have led to greater social and economic deprivation, and an increased dependence of African countries on external loans. The failure of structural adjustment has been so dramatic that some critics of the World Bank and IMF argue that the policies imposed on African countries were never intended to promote development. On the contrary, they claim that their intention was to keep these countries economically weak and dependent. The most industrialized countries in the world have actually developed under conditions opposite to those imposed by the World Bank and IMF on African governments. The U.S. and the countries of Western Europe accorded a central role to the state in economic activity, and practiced strong protectionism, with subsidies for domestic industries. Under World Bank and IMF programs, African countries have been forced to cut back or abandon the very provisions which helped rich countries to grow and prosper in the past(Ann-Louise Colgan, Hazardous to Health: The World Bank and IMF in Africa, Africa Action, April 18, 2002 ).

So, why does this man want to punish the countries after the pandemic? Why scale the institutions and the states to salvage funds from the World Bank? Instead of helping them to increase and ensure better state functions. He wants them to take another round of Structural Adjustment Programs. Which has caused so much ills in the first place. More austerity and less investment in the states.

It is like the beacon was never set and the idea of it takes money to make money. That your only getting more with less. While the states will live on austerity, the reality is that the donors, the aid organization and multi-national organizations will never leave. The circle continues and we never get to build. There will always lack the need and the usage of foreign projects will only be short-term temporary measures, but not systemic relief. Which should be the basis for what the World Bank want to do.

Unless, they want states to hooked and also in need of them. Because, the SAPs creates this and make them addicted too it. Instead of actually becoming independent and also self-sufficient, which should be the goal of any developing agency. That is if they were sincere and wanted states to develop. Not only patch the hurt and move-on. Instead of building it, brick by brick. Peace.

The United Nations Secretary-General: Appeal for global cease-fire (23.03.2020)