Posted at 10:53am : Before announcing any extension of the quarantine, the IATF should finish releasing the P5,000- P8,000 food subsidy provided by the Bayanihan Law, or at the very least release the schedule, chart, and map of releasing the food subsidy: Food is the first line of defense in a quarantine
         As early as one hour after the declaration of the Luzon lockdown March 16 and blockade and suspension of all public transport, the advice here was to preposition food packs for 9.5 million people and/or order the release the 13th month pay for all workers. See post here : https://marichulambino.com/2020/03/16/mass-public-transport-suspended-prepare-food-packs-9-5m-families-30-days-or-release-advance-13th-mo-salary-or-else-quell-food-riots-midway-of-quarantine-do-the-math-to-avoid-chaos-and-violence/

         Within 24 – 48 hours of the imposition of the lockdown,  many mayors, governors and the Vice President shone as brilliant as the blazing summer mornings in this country in this quarantine in the distribution of food and supplies and in transporting essential personnel like health workers (and one, Mayor Vico, is being prosecuted for it, VP Leny almost prosecuted for it).
           Frontliners – doctors, nurses, utility staff everywhere, security guards, grocery personnel, food delivery persons, dazzled the nation in rendering much needed services. Our frontliners are hailed because they directly face hordes of people who may be carrying the virus : They’re called “frontliners”  because they face the virus directly.
            On the macro level however, that is: In the community level and national level, while the bigger portion of the populace, the majority, are still alive and not infected, doctors and nurses are the last ones you need to see. In the macro level, doctors and nurses are your last line of defense.

      Your first line of defense is food in the quarantine.
      The Senate and the House unprecedentedly created new rules and assembled electronically to pass a law to release P2Billion to the national government for distribution as social amelioration and food cash subsidy for thousands of dislocated residents. Big and small corporations, media networks, peoples organizations, student organizations, netizens, all acted as one to raise funds for food distribution.
       The IATF and the national government, it is hoped, would be able to do well or better, now that it is poised to announce a two-week-to-a-month extension of the quarantine based on scientific data (scientific data that should be laymanized before announcing any extension … will write another post on that: Things to do before announcing any extension of the quarantine).
         Here is the first one:
         Before announcing any extension of the quarantine, the IATF should finish releasing the P8,000 food subsidy from the P2Billion, or at the very least release the schedule, chart, and map of releasing the food subsidy. This prevents panic. This stops anxiety. This averts fear.

        you know what — this will even stop the “fake news” and rumors from working: People will believe any rumor if they are anxious and hungry: Remove the anxiety and hunger and you deny “fake news” and rumor its power: Remove anxiety by releasing information early; remove hunger by releasing the food and food subsidies early.

       Stop the violence coming from the police and the military: Release the food and food subsidies. 

      At the very least: Release information on the schedule of release of food subsidies: Release the dates, the time,  the maps and charts, before announcing any extension of the quarantine.
       Because food is the first line of defense in a quarantine.