NCR Plus not yet ready for MGCQ — OCTA fellow

Metro Manila and neighboring provinces Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, and Rizal (NCR Plus) are not yet ready to shift to modified general community quarantine (MGCQ), the most relaxed lockdown classification, a fellow from the OCTA Research group said Friday. 

Interviewed on Super Radyo dzBB, Professor Ranjit Rye said NCR Plus’ average number of new COVID-19 cases remains high at about a thousand infections per day.

“Ang posisyon namin sa OCTA, let’s look at the data first, tingnan muna natin by weekend, mukhang makakabigay [kami] ng posisyon. Pero kung ngayon gagawin ang desisyon ay hindi pa tayo nagka-qualify for MGCQ, that’s definite,” he said.

(Our position in OCTA is let’s look at the data first. Let’s wait for the weekend, maybe we’ll be able to give our position then. But if the decision will be made today, we won’t qualify for MGCQ, that’s definite.)

“But we’re healing much, much better now than two months ago. Pero may pagbagal po 'yung pag-heal natin eh, nag-slowdown kasi nga nagbukas ‘yung ekonomiya natin, marami nang lumalabas (Our healing slowed down because the economy reopened, more people are going out),” he added.

NCR Plus will be under GCQ until June 15. 

Meanwhile, several other areas including Zamboanga City, Iloilo City, and Cagayan de Oro are under the stricter modified enhanced community quarantine amid a spike in COVID-19 cases.

OCTA earlier said the case spike in parts of the Visayas and Mindanao will likely last at least a month. 

The Philippines has tallied 1,293,687 COVID-19 cases with 1,214,454 recoveries and 22,312 deaths as of Thursday afternoon. — RSJ, GMA News