7 March 2020--barely into my first year as governor of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), news about Covid-19 erupted. The Philippine government imposed lockdown, euphemistically called enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) all over Luzon, the country's biggest island, about half of the nation's entire territory. Mobility was restricted. Social distancing was the rule. Economic activity contracted. Many jobs were lost. It was gloom and doom all over. Personal safety was foremost in the mind of everyone, especially those who were immune compromised. This was worse than war, where at least you knew and saw who your enemies were and you could withdraw in safe grounds. In the Covid-19 pandemic, the virus was invisible, it was all over, and potentially lethal.
--Benjamin E. Diokno
Governor, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas

2024/336pp
bookpaper/paperback