There are many things about which Filipinos remain uncertain.
We wonder whether the “slight” increase in COVID numbers in recent days would lead to yet another surge. We know all too well the harrowing effects of a higher number of fresh cases – on the health system, on businesses, on the general public. Certainly it would reverse whatever gains we might have made in the past few months.
We wonder too whether we should at all be concerned about monkeypox, which saw an increase in Europe last month.
We are being warned about a looming food crisis, with more Filipinos poised to suffer the consequences of higher prices and lack of access to basic food on the table.
We are also concerned about the future of the next generation of students, who have been dealt with the challenge of learning during a pandemic. Can they cope with the demands of technology and of the workplace in succeeding years?
These are our questions, among others.
All these uncertainties ask of us, citizens, to do our part and to remain vigilant about the decisions being made by our government officials. More than ever, let us hold them to account and remind them that their actions should serve the people, nobody else – especially not themselves.
The affairs of the state are as much the business of the governed as it is of those they have chosen to lead them. With this we can at least be certain that we truly get the government we deserve.