Pacquiao to gov’t, pols: Halt political gatherings for now as COVID-19 cases rise anew

Senator Manny Pacquiao. Contributed photo

MANILA, Philippines — Senator Manny Pacquiao has called on the government and politicians to suspend any political gatherings for now as the country sees rising COVID-19 cases again.

The presidential aspirant said in a statement Monday that he has advised his team to temporarily suspend all of their political assemblies “until this surge is managed.”

“Kalangan nating makiisa upang mabilis na mapababa ang mga kaso ng COVID-19. Mas mabuti talaga na mabigyan ng pagkakataon ang pamahalaan na gumawa ng mga hakbang upang mapigilan ang lalong pagdami ng mga kaso ng COVID-19 lalo na’t may mga ulat na nagkaroon na ng community transmission itong kinakatakutang Omicron variant,” he said.

“We need to allow the government to take all the appropriate steps to address the rising number of COVID-19 cases. For this, I have advised my team to temporarily suspend all political gatherings and focus more on organizing zoom meetings until this surge is managed by our health authorities,” he also said.

Pacquiao, however, assured that their relief efforts for those affected by super typhoon Odette will continue.

“Tuloy-tuloy po tayo sa paglikom ng mga donasyon at mga relief goods upang madala sa mga lugar na natamaan ng bagyo,” he said.