(FreeMalaysiaToday) MANILA: Philippine presidential candidates on Saturday sounded the alarm over a possible new wave of coronavirus infections, as neighbours China and South Korea battle a resurgence in cases.
With other countries also detecting the new “Deltacron” coronavirus variant, presidential hopefuls called for aggressive vaccinations, intensified border controls and a stronger health care system during a debate organised by the Commission on Elections, the independent poll regulator.
In skipping one interview, Marcos accused a respected journalist, who previously asked him about human rights atrocities and corruption during his father’s autocratic rule, “biased” for being “anti-Marcos”.
Saturday’s debate covered the nine candidates’ economic agenda and pandemic response plan.
As Covid-19 cases have eased at home, the Philippines has moved to reopen the economy, lifting quarantine requirements for vaccinated foreign tourists and ordering over a million outsourcing employees to return to the office next month to generate business activity.
But Covid-19 flare-ups in other Asian countries such as China have prompted candidates to call for an improved pandemic response, even as their own campaign rallies, experts warned, could become superspreader events… Read More
