ielecommuting may help contain nCoV outbreak

3y DELON PORCALLA this global emergency situa- cility, the goverffnent won tbe to choose New Clark City in DOH," Defensor, also House
- lawmakerimportance of achieving zer
glen
(ZOD), qi
tion subsides," he added. wasting frecious time search- Tadac instead. health committee vice chair- defecation (zQUL
open delecatlon
Employers tan help the This is in licht of the fact ing for the right area to contain But Castelo said the facil- person, said. "Assuming the that the fatal and disabling
)uterte administration lessen that ZOtq-nCoV fias killed about the spread of the disease." itv in New Clark Citv was money is spent as it should disease spreads when feces
:he impact or spread of the 700 oeoole and infected nearlv Castelo, vice chairman of d6signed for sporting 6vents be. based on the fixed cost of particles from an infected
rovel coronavirus by allow- sr,obo dthurc in China and 27 the Housetommittee on Metro and not for containing a virus P20,000 per toilet, the P350 mil- ferson are somehow ingested
ng some of their empioyees to other countries and regiorts. Manila developmen! cited the outbreak. lion shoirld be enoughto build by another persory Defensor
vork from home, a key official The Camarines Sur con- obvious struggle among au- Meanwhile, Rep. Michael some 17,500 new public toilets said.
rf the House of Representa- gressman said the adoption thorities on where thev sFould Defensor (Anakalusugan party- where most needed." "'Immunization and1ZOD
ives prooosed vesterdav. 6f the flexible work-at-home quarantine persons sirsfected of list) said the national govem- To ensute absolute trans- are our strongest preventive
"tfris'is pro6ably th6 time arrangement would also help carrying the virus sirlce govem- ment will be spending P350 oarencv and accountabilitv measures against polio. We
:or our companies to give "ease and decongest the traf- medt hid no place ipeiifically million this year to put up in the i'rnolementation of thir arb also counting on baran-
he Telecommuting Act (Re- fic situation in Greater Manila intended for that purpose. thousands of new "sanitarv project, Defensor urged both gay governments to build
ublic Act 11165) a chance bv and reduce the stress of both Confusion and panic toilei facilities" to help suppres's the DPWH and the DOH to additional community toilets
)ilot-testing or trying out thi's citizens and the govemment." marred sovemment measures the resurgent poliovirus that catalogue on their websites on their own to help'achieve
ternativd job arrangement For her part, Quezon Rep. to contrSl the elobal coronavi- sr:reads via the fecal-oral route. the oronosed sites of the new ZOD," he added.
rf allowing their employees, Precious Hipoli to-Castelo rus outbreak aiit tried to locate ' The fresh funding is lodged toilJts ;d to uDdate the list Many Filipinos in informal
f possible, to work in their called for the construction of a venue as quarantine area in the budget of the Depart- upon completiori of every ulut rr rban sefflements as well as in

romes," Deputy Speaker LRay
r'illafuerte said.
"We now have this opportu-
rity for employers to support
lA i1155 and ai the same time
relp the national govemment
ight the global outbreak of
rCoV by letting their workers
vork from their homes until
the country's first quarantine
facilitv to helo the countrv
deal with situations such as tlie
novel coronavirus crisis.
"Building our first quaran-
tine facili$ now would save
us a lot of time and effort to
resoond to similar crisis in the
frrtir re- If we have a national fa-
for dozens of overseas Fili- men+ of Health in the 2020 "Depending on how the the countryside still defecaG in
pino workers being repit iated General Appropriations Act, two departments will properly open ditches, canals, bushes,
from the epicenter of the virus. but the moneywillbe released build and maintain the facili- fields or exposed spaces due
A military base in Fort Mag- directly to th'e Department of ties, Congress may or may not to the lack of toilets.
saysay, Nueva Ecija was initial- Public Works and Highways. authorize additional funding In Metro Manila alone, an
Iy identified for the quarantine "The DP\AIH will construct in the future," the senior ad- estimated 3.5 million residen9
area but doutrts on the facilitr/s the toilets based on a list of ministration lawmaker said. or 25 percent of the populatiory
capability to hold virus carrier locations identified and speci- The return of polio in the still do not have ready access
suspects prompted authorities fications prescribed by the country has underscored the to a household toilet.

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