An official of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines-Episcopal Commission on Youth (CBCP-ECY) on Monday lauded President Rodrigo Duterte’s announcement on the withdrawal of the plan to conduct a dry run of face-to-face classes in January 2021.

Bishop Rex Andrew Alarcon, CBCP-ECY chair, said it is important to ensure the safety of the students before anything else.

“Safety especially of human lives first is a very important and non-negotiable principle. Whatever move, if it seeks the safety and well-being of the people, citizens especially the vulnerable should be supported,” he said in a statement.

Citing that education and all other human endeavors must seek the safety and well-being of all, Alarcon said the resumption of any learning modality and new interventions must ensure “the safety of children and the young”.

Over the weekend, the President announced that he is no longer allowing the pilot testing of face-to-face classes in areas with low-risk for Covid-19 early next year.

This came after a new strain of Covid-19, which was reported to be more infectious, has been detected in the United Kingdom (UK) and has already been reported in other neighboring countries.

Duterte said he could not put the lives of learners at risk, stressing that it would be a “disaster” should he allow the planned resumption of face-to-face classes to push through in January next year. (PNA)