Duterte staying put in Manila amid coronavirus crisis

MANILA, Philippines — President Rodrigo Duterte will stay in Metro Manila to preside over Cabinet meetings daily within the duration of the imposed community quarantine due to the 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19),  Malacañang said Friday.

President Rodrigo Roa Duterte announces the content of the resolution on the National Capital Region community quarantine adopted by the Inter-Agency Task Force on the Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID)  at Malacañan Palace on March 12, 2020. RICHARD MADELO/PRESIDENTIAL PHOTO

“Not only will he not go to Davao, he will preside the Cabinet meeting to be held everyday at noon until the duration of the emergency,” Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo told the INQUIRER in a text message.

The President has approved the imposition of a community quarantine in Metro Manila to minimize the spread and transmission of the viral respiratory illness.

The community quarantine will suspenhd land, domestic air, and domestic sea travel to and from Metro Manila from March 15, 2020 to April 14, 2020.

“The quarantine will be implemented by the local government units assisted by the  law enforcement agencies. And also the response will be swift because all the heads of departments are there to be apprised of any disturbing development and give an  immediate and appropriate response,” Panelo said.

The Philippine government has also upgraded its alert on COVID-19 from Code Red Sublevel 1 to Sublevel 2, which is hoisted when there is evidence of community transmission and prevalence of cases beyond what the government can address.

The World Health Organization (WHO) now considers COVID-19 a pandemic, which means there is a virus causing sustained outbreaks in multiple regions of the world.

The Philippines, so far, has 52 confirmed cases of COVID-19, a respiratory disease caused by a novel coronavirus that first emerged in China’s Hubei province in late 2019.

The virus causes mild symptoms such as fever and cough for most people but can cause serious conditions such as pneumonia for others, especially older adults and immunocompromised or people with existing health problems.

GSG