An outbreak of dengue fever in the Philippines has been declared a national epidemic after causing hundreds of deaths this year in the wake of a government ban on the vaccine.
https://amp.theguardian.com/world/2019/aug/07/philippines-declares-epidemic-after-dengue-fever-kills-more-than-600
Please explain the use of present perfect- has been declared- in the given context. Can't we just say "has declared..." ? Do we need " been" to form passive?
Jigneshbharati Do we need " been" to form passive? Yes. Active "has declared" does not make sense.
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JigneshbharatiDo we need " been" to form passive?
Yes. Active "has declared" does not make sense. The outbreak of fever cannot itself declare a national epidemic.
Present perfect tense is appropriate because something done in the relatively recent past has present effect/relevance.
You can use active voice, but you have to change the sentence:
The government in the Philippines declared an outbreak of dengue fever to be a national epidemic after it caused hundreds of deaths this year in the wake of a government ban on the vaccine.