Thread by @ChuaNathania

The past few weeks have been a nightmare for me. As the Philippines suffers its worst wave yet, my brother got COVID from a colleague since working from home isn't an option for him. A few days later, my whole family tested positive and my dad developed serious complications. 1/x

My dad got pneumonia and his lungs were deteriorating quickly. He had to be confined but we knew hospitals all over Manila were at far over capacity. He spent what little energy he had jumping from hospital to hospital seeing how far in the waitlist he'd be in. 2/x

Amidst the stress and frantically making calls everywhere to find an opening for my dad, my grandmother passed away at 104 years old. We all knew this was coming, but it was still a difficult final three days. This was her in her last birthday when she wished to finally go! 3/x

My mom is a hero for keeping it all together. She lost her mother, but she was still focused on making sure my dad got the proper care. My brothers and I had serious meetings about how to get through this ordeal financially because Philippine public healthcare is a joke. 4/x

My dad finally got a bed in the ER for a few days. He said he couldn't sleep with how busy it was but it was the best compromise we could get. I've been sleeping at 4/5am to account for the time difference. I don't sleep until we get his lab reports and his doctors drop by. 5/x

After a few ups but many more downs, today, he's stable. Stable and eating well with all the food loved one's have sent him. The rest of my family are also doing well. All I could do from this side of the world is send food deliveries, be present in family calls, and hope. 6/x

The reason I share this whole ordeal is because it is a clear example of how poor governance devastates families and ruins lives. Duterte blames individuals for being "pasaway" or irresponsible, but this is a clear systemic failure on a massive scale. #DutertePalpak 7/x

What my family and thousands of other families is going through is political.

Filipinos deserve better, and we need to keep organizing to hold those in power to account. Today, I finally wipe my tears dry. There's work to be done. 8/8