During such a lean time as this, many of us encounter financial difficulties.
With Covid-19 movement restrictions in place, we can hardly visit the banks or ATMs to withdraw money when our cash runs out these days. For those who don’t have bank accounts or can’t withdraw money for some reason, borrowing cash from other people is the only way.
Such was the case of a Saigon resident, who was stopped by policemen for hitting the road during the citywide social distancing period. He explained that he was short of cash and needed to visit his friend to borrow money.
Image credit: Thanh Nien
On 18th July, District 5 patrol officers pulled over a 25-year-old scooter rider to enquire about his reason for hitting the road.
He explained that he was visiting his friend’s house to borrow money because he was in straitened circumstances, Thanh Nien reported.
Notably, he was travelling from District 10 and his friend’s house, according to his statement, is in Binh Tan District.
“Why don’t you use online banking? How can we verify your story?” said a police officer who obviously didn’t buy the man’s story.
As a result, police fined the man VND2,000,000 (~USD86.87) for violating the Covid-19 rule with a non-essential trip.
Sadly, the man ended up paying a hefty fine before he could borrow any cash.
While this story doesn’t sound tenable to many people, it can actually happen. Some people don’t have bank accounts or they forget their PINs and their cards get blocked. There are also cases in which people’s cards expire during the social distancing period.
Image credit: Thanh Nien
11 days into the highest level of movement restrictions, Saigon residents have experienced unprecedented challenges in daily activities. Despite rigorous preventive measures, the city’s daily caseloads continue hiking.
As of this morning, Saigon has reported 1,519 confirmed cases, bringing the total tally of the 4th Covid-19 wave to 35,295. In total, there are currently 22 active clusters, according to Suc Khoe Doi Song.
Image credit: Thanh Nien
From 27th April until now, Vietnam has seen a total number of 55,786 Covid-19 infections, most of which are recorded in Ho Chi Minh City.
To curb the fierce spread of coronavirus, 19 provinces in southern Vietnam have closed borders and imposed the highest level of movement restrictions.
With southern Vietnam rapidly becoming the epicenter of the pandemic, Hanoi has followed suit and advised residents to remain indoors.
After Ho Chi Minh City, other provinces such as Dong Nai, Dong Thap, and Binh Duong are seeing a startling jump in daily cases. These alarming figures go to show that we’re dealing with the most intense Covid-19 outbreak ever and we can’t afford to be complacent.
This pandemic takes no prisoners, and we must be determined in flattening the curve before a larger proportion of our residents contract the virus.
For the time being, let’s stay indoors and get tested for Covid-19 whenever possible. Let’s refrain from panic buying groceries and breathing equipment.
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Cover image adapted from: Thanh Nien
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