Metro Manila will be placed under the strictest enhanced community quarantine classification from August 6 to 20 in light of the threat posed by the Delta coronavirus variant, Malacañang announced on Friday.
“Mapait na desisyon ito pero ito ay para sa kabutihan ng lahat [This is a painful decision but it is for the good of the people],” presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said in a press briefing.
From July 30 to August 5, however, the region will be under general community quarantine “subject to heightened and additional restrictions,” said Roque.
Under ECQ only essential trips and services are allowed, while GCQ with heightened restrictions and additional restrictions protocol bans indoor and al fresco dining.
The decision was reached after the Metro Manila Council, which is composed of Metro Manila mayors, met with the government inter-agency COVID-19 task force to appeal for the imposition of stricter measures in the region.
According to independent group OCTA Research, Metro Manila could possibly see as many as 2,000 new COVID-19 cases per day by next week.
Currently, the National Capital Region is averaging almost 1,100 new cases per day. OCTA said the reproduction rate of the virus in Metro Manila has climbed to 1.35, indicating sustained COVID-19 transmission.
OCTA has led calls for a two-week “circuit breaker” lockdown to arrest the spread of the highly contagious Delta coronavirus variant. –
from GMA news