“This man was unprofessional, disrespectful, and outright rude.”
The video of the presidential spokesperson berating healthcare workers represented by Dr. Maricar Limpin, president of the Philippine College of Physicians, is all over social media. The spox blew his top after Dr. Limpin pleaded with the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) on COVID-19 to reconsider the decision to ease restrictions and lower quarantine classification in Metro Manila in the middle of the recent record-breaking number of cases. In her emotional appeal, the doctor said that cases will surely skyrocket further and that our health system will collapse.
In a leaked video from the September 7 IATF meeting, the spox was shown furiously berating and castigating Dr. Limpin and other HCWs for allegedly thinking that only they (HCWs) are correct (in terms of addressing the pandemic) and for not saying anything good about the way the government is responding to COVID-19.
Social media has been on fire and the spox is at the receiving end of people’s ire. He has been trending in a very negative way since the video surfaced. Not a few noted that at one point, he was afflicted with the virus and had the temerity to jump the line of COVID-19 patients at the Philippine General Hospital (PGH).
On the other hand, a doctor on Twitter noted that Dr. Limpin is also a COVID-19 survivor. She contracted the virus while taking care of her patients. Her family was also hit and this caused her mother’s death. The doctor has continuously served as part of our health system and as president of the PCP, she definitely knows what she speaks of.
Because of the scandal caused by his meltdown, the spox has since apologized, saying that he became emotional and that he’s “tao lang.” He also said that IATF meetings are supposed to be secret, allegedly because they make very important decisions that affect everybody. He, therefore, hinted that the leaking of the video should not have been done.
This is interesting and instructive. One, does the spox feel that he is entitled to blow his top and berate medical professionals because, after all, their meetings are secret? And two, is the leaking of the video a sign that there are those in IATF that do not like the spox, and saw his loss of temper as an opportunity to make public a characteristic otherwise not seen by people? Whatever it is, the video has added to an already long list of reasons why people are predicting that the spox will not win should he push through with his plan to run for a Senate seat next year.
For her part, according to reports, Dr. Limpin felt shocked and insulted by what the spox did to her and other HCWs. Limpin, besides being the President of the PCP, is also a convenor of the Healthcare Professional Alliance Against COVID-19. She said, “I was surprised with the reaction. I think that reaction is uncalled for, it’s not expected and should not be a reaction by government officials.” She added that the spox has to realize that he is representing the president and that, therefore, any action he makes reflects on the president.
It is true that the spokesperson only serves as the President’s mouthpiece. Strictly speaking, his personal opinions must be kept to himself because he can only officially speak on behalf of his principal. He is not entitled to express his personal views. Most of all, he has no right to lash at HCWs who have been sacrificing since last year to save the lives of Filipinos at the risk of getting the virus and losing their own lives.
His being in the IATF must be official and therefore, whatever he says there must completely adhere to the president’s position on issues being discussed. It is hard to imagine that he was under instructions to lose his temper and berate HCWs. It is dreadful to think that the spox’ unprofessional, disrespectful, and outright rude behavior reflects how this administration looks at HCWs.
Dr. Limpin said that if the spox could treat them that way, how would he treat ordinary people? She is of the opinion that the President should actually remove the spox from office because he is not doing the president service. The doctor also demanded that the spox apologize to the whole healthcare workforce because what he did was against all who are in the healthcare sector.
Outside of the spox’s rudeness, the IATF must immediately address Dr. Limpin’s warning that should COVID-19 cases further increase significantly, our health system will collapse. This is most worrisome because if this happens, many more Filipinos will die.
As it is, several hospitals have announced that they have reached full capacity in terms of COVID-19 cases. The Health Department has issued a statement that COVID-19 medicines are already low. Not a few HCWs are protesting about their working conditions and the lack of government support for them. At the time of this writing, ten volunteer doctors of the Philippine General Hospital (PGH), the country’s largest COVID-19 referral center, have resigned.
If only the spox listened intently, this warning was what should have made him blow his top. And his anger should have targeted the IATF for its failure to contain COVID-19. If they refuse to heed the appeal of our HCWs, they must make sure that COVID-19 cases will not surge because if Dr. Limpin and her group are correct, it might spell the health system’s collapse. If this happens, it is the Filipino people who will suffer the consequences.
