Duque refuses to relax measures vs. COVID-19

Health Secretary Francisco Duque III on Sunday said the measures against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) should be maintained. 

Interviewed on Dobol B sa News TV, Duque cited the lockdown implementation in China that lasted up to 55 days to control the transmission of the virus.

“Hindi puwedeng magpaluwag tayo, ganu'n din sa Pilipinas. Hindi puwedeng luwagan ang mga hakbang na ating nilatag, isinasagawa,” Duque said.

“Mahirap magsalita sa kasalukuyan dahil tinitignan pa rin natin 'yung datos ng bilang. Dapat bantayan pa rin natin,” he added.

On Saturday, Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr., chief implementer of the national plan against COVID-19, said they are still studying if the enhanced community quarantine will be extended.

"Maganda po ang nagawa ng lockdown. Na-slow down ng lockdown ang spread ng virus. With that, nakita namin na malaki ang possibility na magkakaroon ng lockdown ng 15 more days," Galvez said.

Duque said the country can learn from specialists from different countries, including China. The Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases authorized the technical visit of a 12-man team from China who will help the country fight COVID-19 by providing technical advice on epidemic prevention and control and sharing medical treatment experience.

“Advisory ang papel na kanilang gagampanan. Gagabayan ang ating mga ospital, ating mga doktor. Tsaka 'yung mismo ating technical advisory group of experts, para magkumpara ng kanilang mga notes,” he said.

“Ano na ‘yung nakalap nila na best practice na puwede nating gamitin, pamamaraan kung paano pangangasiwaan nang mas epektibo ang bawat kaso ng COVID-19. Ano ba ‘yung gamot na kanilang sinubukan,” he added.

According to Duque, they have to conduct more testing to have an accurate picture of the COVID-19 situation in the Philippines.

Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire on Saturday said the Department of Health (DOH) is eyeing to conduct 8,000 to 10,000 COVID-19 tests by the end of April.

The enhanced community quarantine in the entire Luzon took effect on March 17. President Rodrigo Duterte said the quarantine period would last until April 14.

The DOH said as of Saturday, the number of COVID-19 cases in the country reached 3,094 as more tests are being done. The death toll rose to 144 while the number of recoveries increased to 57.

READ: COVID-19 Dashboard: Summary of Cases in the Philippines

 —KG, GMA News