IN FOCUS | Issue No. 2 | August-December 2020

Coming To Terms
with the New Normal
The COVID-19 pandemic is
at a record height, and the
country’s lack of support and
preparation has robbed so
many Filipinos of their opportunities,
experiences,
and livelihood. No one imagines
staying at their home
for nine months or longer.
Last March 16, 2020,
President Rodrigo Duterte declared
the beginning of the
Enhanced Community Quarantine
(ECQ) in Luzon, which
was also the week for the final
examinations for some educational
institutions. As the
ECQ was declared, the education
was paused and gave
students and faculty members
a wave of relief as they would
finally get a break from academic
and work pressures.
The media labeled the situation
as the “New Normal.”
For the time being, it
felt like it was too early to call
it that. It could not possibly be
the new norm, as we have not
been quarantined for that long.
Months would then pass by,
and we are still at home that
may have convinced some families
to accept that it is indeed
the new normal, while some
are wondering that it is not the
case. Maybe it was hope that
kept them from wholeheartedly
accepting changes; if it isn’t
hope, then perhaps it was fear.
The nine months that
we had spent at home were
difficult enough since we were
forced to adapt to a situation
we have never encountered
before, and we are still not
prepared for it despite living in
this horrible condition for almost
a year. I’d like to think that
most students were dismayed
once they found out that next
semester will also be held
online, and it would be no
surprise if there would be
an increased number of students
who wouldn’t be enrolling
for the next semester
due to the difficulties it
brought that may have been
too much to bear for some.
Realizing that there
wouldn’t be face-to-face classes
slapped me in the face and
acknowledged the new normal.
It’s like I went through the
five stages of grief when I heard
this, and well, I know there are
others out there who also find
it is hard to accept until now.
Even then, I still can’t help but
feel contempt towards individuals
who would carelessly step
out of their homes especially
when it’s unnecessary, and as
much as I’d like to hold them
accountable for being part of
the reason as to why more
7 OPINION
and more people are at the
risk of getting exposed to the
virus, I do not wish to interfere
with how people cope
with the difficulties that
the pandemic has brought.
Maybe being able to
spend time with their loved
ones is what they needed to
keep themselves from being
bothered by the restrictions
placed. It’s too complicated,
and it’s different for everyone,
but even so, the pandemic
is still very much real,
and as difficult as it is to accept,
we need to live according
to the rules and expectations
of our present situation.
Alas, a glimpse of light
at the end of the tunnel as
new vaccines are released to
the public, but the danger is
far from over. We must remain
vigilant against the real threat
of contracting the SARS-CoV-2.
The Vaccine Race
while the calendar has changed,
the pandemic continues to
engulf the world. But in this
New Year, we might have the
tool that can turn the tide.
Collectively, this worldwide
vaccination campaign is
a titanic task that is almost unparalleled
in modern medicine.
While the vaccines may seem
like a huge blessing, we should
remain observant. This is an unprecedented
event —no vaccine
in history has been developed
in such a quick period. To develop
a vaccine and essentially
say that it is safe and works
for most people without any
long-term effects would take
extensive research and time.
The previous record-holder
was the mumps vaccine in
1967, having developed in 4
years. Earlier experimental vaccines
were developed by different
pharmaceutical companies, before
the success of “Mumpsvax.”
To date, several pharmaceutical
companies are
battling it out to develop the
most successful vaccine in the
fight against the SARS-CoV-2.
When Russia announced the
Sputnik V within a short period,
Pfizer then announced their product.
We cannot help but wonder
why their timelines are too close.
While we understand
that they are both working on
the solution, the announcements
seem hurried in such a
manner that it becomes a race
for prestige. It is about pressure
from the competition, and with
hasty decisions, we may be compromising
the quality and the
safety of the public. In the succeeding
months, companies like
Pfizer, Moderna, and Sinovac
Biotech announced worldwide
their experimental vaccines.
Consequent to our delight
to hear this development,
there are still some questions
concerning the long-term reliability
of the vaccine and the unnecessary
side effects. People start to
wonder if it was truly rushed and if
there was a compromise in terms of
the vaccines’ overall performance.
One of the biggest concerns
is if some pharmaceutical
companies kept most of their information
regarding their products
undisclosed and the initial
details lead to people’s curiosity,
particularly in an event where the
world is counting on every bit of
information to save humanity.
By delaying responses and keeping
the details hidden, we do not
gain the trust of the public. Nevertheless,
some people - most
especially our frontliners who
volunteered to get vaccinated,
do not know what could happen
- and some doctors posted that
despite their doubts, they understood
the benefits of vaccination.
However, these products
may carry short-term benefits
since it was hastily produced and
would still require extensive studies.
The public needs to be informed
of the basic mechanisms
of these new vaccines in a way
that they will understand.Through
this public awareness campaign,
we could lessen vaccine hesitancy
and subsequently provide
better transparency. This will be
aligned with the Local Government
Units (LGUs) scrambling to
purchase vaccines from different
pharmaceutical companies.
Consequently, the vaccine
race has been pecked on by
politics to some degree, and that
by putting pride over the public’s
health, we are endangering our
people. To be vaccinated immediately
as there are still substantial
risks aside from the typical side effects
of vaccination is hazardous.
It seems that our top priority
is observing the effects on
those who volunteered to get
vaccinated and keep our mask
on. We cannot win the long-term
fight against the virus if we are
not strategic, if we do not understand
the science behind it,
and are complacent. And while
these vaccines may have achieved
breakthroughs, we still have a long
way to go before winning this war.