You must remember this: Don’t kiss if you got the disease – Garin

MANILA, Philippines — Amid the threat posed by the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in the country, a lawmaker has offered one tip to the public: Do not kiss your partner if you are feeling sick.

That was the advice of Iloilo 1st District Rep. Janette Garin, a former secretary of the Department of Health (DOH), as more cases of the disease are confirmed in the country.

“Kung ikaw ay may ubo, masakit ang lalamunan, lagnat, sipon, huwag halikan ang asawa, boyfriend o girlfriend. Huwag po tayo mahiya na sabihin na while kissing is enjoyed by some, kissing is actually dirty,” Garin said in a press briefing.

(If you are experiencing cough, sore throat, fever, colds, do not kiss your husband or wife, girlfriend or boyfriend. Let us not be ashamed to say that while kissing is enjoyed by some, kissing is actually dirty.)

During the House committee on health’s meeting on COVID-19 status and response, Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said social distancing is one of the possible ways to curb the spread of COVID-19.

Garin shared the same suggestion as Duque, saying social distancing, which includes, among others, avoiding large mass gatherings, can prevent further the spread of the disease.

“We limit the transmission by limiting gathering in crowded places, limiting yung mga disco masyado lalo na kung naka-kulob. Kung hindi talaga mapigilan, at kailangan ng social gathering, dapat open place, lusot pasok yung hangin,” Garin said.

(We limit the transmission by limiting gathering in crowded places, limiting discos especially those that are enclosed. If it cannot be avoided and social gathering is needed, it should be in an open place.)

Interior Secretary Eduardo on Tuesday also said that social distancing will be implemented in Metro Manila to combat the disease.

In a report by the Associated Press, “social distancing” is defined as the process of limiting people to gather and spreading the virus—a move that is being practiced in other countries with confirmed cases of COVID-19 such as Italy and Japan.

Regarding concerns about those who use crowded public transportation on a daily basis to get to work, Duque, in the same hearing, admitted that addressing coronavirus – related concerns of those in poor communities and those using mass public transport – is a “big challenge” when it comes to commuting.

NCR lockdown?

Another suggestion floated by Albay 2nd District Rep. Joey Salceda was putting Metro Manila under lockdown.

But Garin thumbed down this suggestion, saying a temporary lockdown “would not solve the problem”.

“Ang mangyayari kasi pag mag-lockdown tayo, ang ibig sabihin, mayroon kang solusyon. Ay kung magl-lockdown ka lang pero hindi mo naman alam yung gagawin, napakahirap pong mag-lockdown ng isa at kalahating taon,” Garin said.

(What will happen is if we impose a lockdown, that means there is already a solution. But if you will impose a lockdown but you do not know what to do, it is hard to impose a lockdown for one and a half years.)

For House Minority Leader Bienvenido Abante Jr., meanwhile, the lockdown should be imposed on prostitution dens and casinos.

“Sabi ng isang congressman ay may lockdown na dito. Ako ay may suggestion, mag-lockdown na sa mga prostitution houses, tsaka mga night clubs, sa mga casino lockdown na ho lahat yan,” Abante said.

(One congressman said there should be a lockdown. My suggestion is to impose a lockdown of prostitution houses, night clubs, and casinos.)

“‘Yan po ang simulang lockdown sapagkat bawal naman maghalikan sabi ni Congressman Garin (Lockdown should start there because we cannot kiss anyway according to Congressman Garin,” he added, in jest.

Under Salceda’s proposal, work in Metro Manila should be suspended for one week while classes in the nation’s capital region must be postponed for at least a week or until the end of the school year in April.

Salceda also proposed the closure of the North Luzon Expressway and the South Luzon Expressway, the North and South’s major freeways to and from Metro Manila.