3 minute read
NATIONAL NEWS
SEC. MARTIN ANDANAR
PCOO
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Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) Secretary Martin Andanar on Friday brings the ‘BIDA Solusyon’ to Impasugong town in Bukidnon province with perfect timing, just as the town celebrates its Indigenous Peoples Day. Together with partner government agencies, Andanar explained the basics of the ‘BIDA’ concept by encouraging the public to regularly adopt the minimum health standards as a behavioral lifestyle as we course through the new normal. “BIDA Solusyon is really a big help to the national government in explaining to the people on what should be done so we can prevent COVID-19. This is also important so we can continue on our activities as well as proceed with our functions in developing our town. We definitely could not let COVID-19 defeat us,” the Secretary said. BIDA Solusyon is a social and behavior change campaign that encourages the practice of regular handwashing and facemask-wearing to lower the chances of coronavirus spread. The PCOO chief explained that the acronym “BIDA” stands for B-Bawal ang walang mask or not wearing of a mask is prohibited; I stands for I-sanitize
ang mga kamay, iwas hawak sa mga bagay or always wash or sanitize and avoid touching things; D-Dumistansya ng isang metro or maintain a distance of at least one meter; and A-Alamin ang totoong impormasyon or know the correct information and updates about the pandemic. Likewise, Dr. Beverly Lorraine Ho, Health Promotion and Communication Service chief of the Department of Health, emphasized that wearing masks and observance of physical distancing can help prevent further transmission of COVID-19. She described the results of recent studies showing that wearing a mask reduces transmission by 96 percent for N95 masks and 67 percent for non-N95 masks, while the observance of physical distancing by one meter can reduce the chance of transmission by 82 percent with protection increasing as distance is lengthened. Dr. Ho also emphasized that face shields should not be used as substitute for face masks and should only be used in addition to masks as added protection. Impasugong mayor Anthony Uy, meanwhile, announced that the town has just been declared COVID-free because those who were infected had
Presidential Communications Operations Office Secretary Martin Andanar, together with partner government agencies, takes the ‘BIDA Solusyon’ with perfect timing to Impasugong town in Bukidnon, just as the town celebrates its Indigenous Peoples Day on Friday, October 23, with the shared objective of resolving COVID-19 pandemic at the barangay level. (PIA Bukidnon)
recovered from the dreaded disease. “We have been battling COVID-19 for almost eight months. We only had five COVID cases when we started receiving LSIs and ROFs, and we thanked DSWD for the never-ending support, especially during those times. Now, Impasugong town is COVID-free,” the mayor said. Acknowledging mayor Uy’s gratitude, Assistant Secretary Rhea Peñaflor of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) announced that the Department will soon resume its validation phase for the third-round of assessment of “Listahanan” to make sure that those unregistered poor households will be included in DSWD’s list of qualified beneficiaries for its different social protection programs and services. Consequently, Philippine Information Agency Director-General Ramon Cualoping III who also graced Impasugong town’s IP Day celebration, said the government’s effort to #ExplainExplainExplain has been gaining momentum as it brings the government closer to the people. “Based on the directive of President Rodrigo Roa Duterte, the national government should be brought right into our doorsteps so we can also give you all the initiatives and programs of the Duterte administration,” Cualoping said. (RLRB/PIA Bukidnon)
