EDITORIAL - The fakers and the hoarders

Trust that Filipinos will always find a way to take advantage of a disadvantageous situation. Their ingenuity is inherent. If it is hot they will sell ice, if there is no electricity they will sell solar-powered devices, if there is no hope they will sell promises, and so on.

But this ingenuity isn’t always a good thing.

And because paracetamol has been proven to have some effect at combatting or at least keeping at bay the coronavirus, some people have gone to great lengths to make them available for others for their own benefit.

And no, we are not just talking about those who hoard the medicines --an unfortunate knee-jerk reaction many of us have-- to sell them online at exorbitant prices. We are also talking about those who actually make or sell fake medicines.

There are now many cases of desperate people who went online to buy paracetamol only to find that they had been sold fake medicines.

We don’t have to tell you how dangerous fake medicines are. They give people a false sense of assurance that they are protected. It is this false sense of assurance that may lead them to take unnecessary risks, thinking they are safe.

This is to say nothing about what those fake medicines may actually contain. They may even have ingredients that are actually harmful instead of helpful. And average people don’t always have access to a lab that can break ingredients down to ease their fears. 

Those who hoard legitimate medicines and sell them for an arm or a leg may think they are morally above those who sell fake medicines. To some extent, yes. But just a smidge above. They are still no different from price gougers who are taking advantage of the desperation of others. They are not entrepreneurs, they are opportunistic vultures.

Needless to say, people who do either --sell fake medicines or hoard them to sell at a premium-- need to found and punished. There are few bigger sins than taking advantage of the desperation and helplessness of others.