Vico Sotto: Mass testing should be ‘up and running’ before deciding quarantine lifting in Pasig

Pasig Mayor Vico Sotto said Wednesday that mass testing for the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in his city should be in place before authorities decide whether or not to lift the quarantine meant to prevent further transmission.

Sotto said Pasig's infection rate is a "fairly straight" line or "not exponential," with 10 to 15 confirmed cases added to the city total per day.

"But the question is, is it because the curve is flattening or is it because we haven't tested enough?" he said at a virtual presser hosted by the Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines.

"So I think before we even talk about lifting quarantine, we have to make sure that this mass testing is already up and running and that... the initial stages of this mass testing has already been completed so that we can make an informed decision of whether we should lift partially, completely or not at all," he added.

He said he will defer to the national government on the fate of the Luzon-wide lockdown, but said a lifting in Pasig "might be a little bit premature" given the increase in their number of COVID-19 cases. He said the economy also has to be considered.

Sotto said the city has recorded 266 confirmed cases and is able to conduct 350 tests a day. At this rate, they can complete their backlog of testing of suspected and probable cases by Wednesday or Thursday and then proceed to testing frontliners, close contacts, and those in high-risk sectors, he said.

The mayor said he considers their current testing capability "satisfactory" in providing them a picture of the city's COVID-19 situation.

He earlier said Pasig has six COVID-19 testing booths set up in their super health centers. The local government also has a partnership with the Medical City, a private hospital, he said.

The Luzon enhanced community quarantine is scheduled to last until April 30. President Rodrigo Duterte has consulted health experts about the potential effects of an extension, modification, or lifting of the lockdown and will reportedly make a decision on Thursday. — RSJ, GMA News