Things are getting bad!!

[GWMinUS]

My friends there in the PH tell me people are desperate to get money and food. My guy in Cebu has been laid off from his Hotel and is trying to support his Family of 5, including Mom and Dad. He has a degree in HRM but no one is hiring. He says he might make it for 2 more weeks. They are eating what things they can grow in the garden.

My other friend who lives north of Manila says he has a Family of 15!! And they all work to make School Uniforms. No one buying those these days. His Mom is 84 yo. He says they failed to get on the Barangay List for food and aid. The National Govt is supposed to distribute funds for people who "qualify". Between 5000 to 8000 PHP. Since his Sister was working before, they do not qualify. He said the Barangay did give them TWO live Chickens this past week. They are keeping one for eggs and the other went into a pot of Adobo. I tried to send him 1000PHP by MoneyGram. But he found the Pawn Shops are closed so he could not pick up the Transfer. Now we are trying a Mobile Wallet, GCash. He is having problems with that as well.

I read online that People are restless in Manila. Coming out if they think Food will be given out. And one man was shot dead this weekend. He was Drunk and out After the Curfew. President Duerte has stated it is OK for Police to shoot anyone violating the Lock-Down. Not staying in their tiny hot houses all day, gathering in the street, or out after Curfew. (Duerte makes Trump sound harmless!! Just take your Hydroxychloroquine and be Healed!!)

My only friend doing OK lives in a small town on the Coast on Leyte. He goes out early each day to fish. Three boats. They have managed to net many many fish. Mostly Sardines, Scad and Bangus. Good for him.

I think it is the poor people who live in the Cities that are having a difficult time. I just hope the National or Local Govt will step in and help!!!

 

[Guest]

1   Duerte is a diabolical leader and I'm amazed that he got elected.   

 

2   In places like the Philippines, where they have a young population, extreme poverty and high population density, I think it's going to be difficult to make quarantine work without people going very hungry.    They might just be better off carrying on as normal, or just requesting people over a certain age to take precautions.   

Of course, how you isolate older people when there might be a large family sharing some very small accommodation is another question.

 

[spoon]

Just to give an idea, food industry and their value chain will be in dire need of additional workers to meet the demand during lockdown. Few company like tesco and postal services here already posting advertisement looking for workers, so if you have friends there, maybe this could be a chance for them to still find work during this trying time. I recall when my grandparent told us during world war II, most houses plant casava and potatoes, and basically lives off them for few years, and current situation should be less dire as most food industry is still operating. 

[Guest]

8 hours ago, spoon said:

Just to give an idea, food industry and their value chain will be in dire need of additional workers to meet the demand during lockdown. Few company like tesco and postal services here already posting advertisement looking for workers, so if you have friends there, maybe this could be a chance for them to still find work during this trying time. I recall when my grandparent told us during world war II, most houses plant casava and potatoes, and basically lives off them for few years, and current situation should be less dire as most food industry is still operating. 

Yes.   Once all the restaurants shut, there should be an increase in demand for supermarket food to replace all the restaurant meals.  

However, that's all very well where people can afford the food.     The Philippines is very poor.   

Also, I imagine any bar boy in Thailand who comes from Laos or Cambodia isn't going to easily get a job in Tesco.

 

 

[fedssocr]

I've been thinking about this a good bit lately. Poor people who are barely surviving everywhere are in big trouble now. 

[Guest]

On 4/7/2020 at 2:59 AM, fedssocr said:

I've been thinking about this a good bit lately. Poor people who are barely surviving everywhere are in big trouble now. 

 Exactly.   

So far, the lockdown isn't much stress for someone like myself, with a house, a garden I can use any time and nearby countryside where I can take my permitted daily exercise.   Plenty of food in the fridge & no cash flow problems.

For people in very poor countries, Philippines, India etc, where the poorest often buy food with the money they earned on that day, the lockdown must be really difficult.   Other people will eat street food & have little or no cooking facilities at home.

If the governments don't put in place measures to feed people, they might well be better off not having a lockdown.