Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 9)— As the country celebrates Araw ng Kagitingan, or Day of Valor, Filipinos are encouraged to play their own “heroic” part and contribute to the fight against COVID-19.
The Joint Task Force COVID Shield said even a simple act like staying at home will have a huge impact in the country’s battle to contain the spread of the infectious disease.
“A simple act of obedience by staying at home is already a big contribution to contain and eventually defeat this virus,” the group, composed of officials from the Philippine National Police, the Armed Forces of the Philippines, the Philippine Coast Guard, and the Bureau of Fire Protection, said in a statement on Thursday.
“And a simple act of optimism by turning the home quarantine as a precious time to bond, to pray and to reflect for the Lenten season is a potent weapon to show to the world what Filipinos are really made of,” it added.
The Philippines has recorded 3,870 cases of COVID-19, where 182 have died while 96 have recovered.
For its part, the National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP) urged Filipinos to continue clinging to hope and take inspiration from our hero-ancestors who, even in fear, have risen to every challenge.
“The same history shows us that many nameless Filipinos during the Second World War, while in fear, rose to the challenge of their day with hope,” the NHCP said in its Araw ng Kagitingan statement.
“Just as we had 78 years ago, with verve and optimism in bracing new solutions, we hold on to the collective strength of our national character, our innate compassion, our faith, and our bayanihan spirit,” it added.
Other government officials also paid tribute to the country’s “modern-day heroes” manning the frontlines of the war against COVID-19.
“We owe them so much for bearing the brunt of the crisis on our behalf,” Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said in his message, while also calling for unity in the light of the crisis.
