LIVESTREAM: Duterte addresses the nation May 12 on ECQ fate

MANILA, Philippines – President Rodrigo Duterte will address the nation on Tuesday morning, May 12, to decide on enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) imposed in Metro Manila and several high-risk areas.

Duterte addresses the nation May 12 on ECQ fate

Presidential Spokesperson Secretary Harry Roque Jr. said Duterte's taped address will be released Tuesday morning. "The President’s message to the people will be aired tomorrow at 8 am," he tweeted.

UPDATENCR, Laguna and Cebu City placed under modified ECQ

The decision on ECQ extension, lifting or downgrading to general community quarantine (GCQ) will be science-based and and the country’s capacity to provide care for those who will get sick, according to Roque in a virtual press briefing in Malacañang on Monday.

READ: Decision to lift or extend ECQ will be science based – Palace

Aside from Metro Manila, under validation are areas of Central Luzon except Aurora province, CALABARZON, Pangasinan, Benguet, Albay, Iloilo including Iloilo City, Cebu including Cebu City, Bacolod City, Zamboanga City, Davao de Oro, Davao del Norte and Davao City.

LIVESTREAM: President Rodrigo Duterte's address (May 12, 2020)



UPDATEIn his taped address on Tuesday, Duterte did not announce the specific areas which will be put in certain quarantine measures, but said some may be allowed to move and work while others to remain in lockdown.

The Palace official said that the current trend is showing that the Philippines still has the capacity to take in more critical patients, which is why some areas have already been placed under the GCQ. However, he cautioned that we still have to be careful.

Secretary Roque pointed out that whether ECQ or GCQ, it is still a community quarantine and that life will not be back to normal unless a cure or a vaccine is available.

In light of the recent meeting of Metro Manila mayors, the Palace and Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) Spokesperson said that the IATF will listen to the mayors’ suggestions on the possible lifting or retention of the ECQ in the NCR.

Under the ECQ, protocols and restrictions in the movement of people are in place, there are no public transportation, businesses are closed except for essential services like healthcare facilities, food establishments, financial institutions, among others.

While under the GCQ, certain sectors will be allowed to operate and have their employees go out and work in phases, there will be restricted opening of malls covering non-leisure shops, some public transport will be allowed to operate at reduced capacities, and priority and essential construction projects will resume.

GCQ also mandates that those who are 0 to 20 years old, those who are 60 years old and above, and those who are at high risk of getting the disease will have to remain at home.

As of Monday, the Philippines has reported 292 new cases bringing the total COVID-19 cases to 11,086. This includes 1,999 recoveries and 726 fatalities.

Of the new cases, 162 or 56 percent are from the National Capital Region, 74 or 25 percent are from Region 7 or Central Visayas, and the rest are from other regions.

Globally, more than 4.1 million people have so far infected with the novel coronavirus, killing over 280,000. Around 1.4 million have recovered from the disease.

— The Summit Express


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