SPEAKER Alan Peter Cayetano has said public-private cooperation is key to getting the country’s economy back on track while making sure the public is kept safe from coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) pandemic.
Cayetano made the statement on the same day the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Disease (IATF-EID) and the National Task Force (NTF) Against COVID-19 launched the StaySafe.PH mobile application, the country’s official contract-tracing system which aims to contain the spread of the new coronavirus by encouraging users to actively report their health conditions and symptoms as well as those of their family members.
The app allows private establishments to require users to scan centrally-mapped QR codes before entering, removing the need for customers to fill out health declaration forms.
“This is the kind of public-private partnership that we need right now so that we can get back on track with the economy without sacrificing our public health,” Cayetano said.
He said the launch of the app is “very good news” to the House of Representatives, which he said had realized early in the pandemic that the use of new technologies must be maximized to get ahead of the virus.
“This is very good news that we will now have the StaySafe app in our tracing arsenal. Possible game changer ito in our fight against COVID-19,” he added.
Aside from providing relevant information to users depending on their status, the system is centralized and linked to the RT-PCR laboratories nationwide so all users can be cross-validated quickly should a suspected or confirmed case arise.
Establishments, offices, and other public places can be alerted to the presence of a user who has just been confirmed COVID-positive almost in real-time.
It is also easily accessible to the network or public and private partners that want to use it and provides integration to other platforms already developed independently.
Meanwhile, Cayetano renewed his call for cooperation from the public as the government is “trying its best to fight the virus.”
“Hindi po pwede ‘yung ayaw natin sumunod sa pagsuot ng face mask, paghugas ng kamay, at social distancing, tapos ‘pag tumataas ang bilang ng mga infected, sa gobyerno lahat ng sisi,” he said.
“We have to take responsibility for our actions. We have to be disciplined,” he added.
