By Genalyn Kabiling Malacañang has thanked the public for recognizing the benefits of the home quarantine policy imposed to stem the coronavirus outbreak based on a recent survey. Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque
(Jansen Romero/ MANILA BULLETIN) Presidential spokesman Harry Roque admitted that the stay-at-home rule and other quarantine measure have been not been an easy government decision given its impact on the economy and livelihood of workers. "The Palace is pleased with the Social Weather Stations (SWS) 2020 COVID-19 Mobile Phone Survey conducted May 4-10, 2020, showing 84% of Filipinos believe that strict stay-at-home measures due to COVID-19 'are worth it to protect people and limit the spread of the virus,'" he said. "The decision, we have to stress, is not an easy one because as we protect the health and safety of our people, the means of livelihood and the economy have been greatly affected. We thus thank our people for understanding the consequences of this presidential directive," he said. The survey showed majority of Filipinos were supportive of the home quarantine rule imposed in areas under community quarantine. At least 84 percent of the 4,010 respondents found the home quarantine protocol was worth it as a precaution against the virus while 15 percent felt the measure put additional burden on the people. Roque noted that President Duterte acted "decisively" when he placed Luzon under enhanced community quarantine back in March to contain the spread of spread of the new coronavirus disease. After more than two months of strict lockdown, the government has already started to ease the quarantine measures in a bid to jumpstart the economy. More business have been allowed to reopen while public transportation may operate at reduced capacity subject to minimum health standards. Roque expressed confidence the local economy can recover while health precautions are still observed. "We are confident that our nation will be on economic rebound as long as we continue to heed the advice of our authorities that we observe minimum public health standards, such as staying at home, observing proper hygiene, wearing of face mask and maintaining physical and social distancing," he said. Read more: 84 per cent say stay-at-home measures ‘worth it’ — SWS