Philippines extends coronavirus lockdown in Manila and two high-risk areas

The Philippine government on Tuesday extended a lockdown in the capital and two other coronavirus-stricken areas until the end of May, but allowed for some modification to jump-start the economy.

Presidential spokesman Harry Roque said Metropolitan Manila, the province of Laguna and the central city of Cebu would remain under “enhanced community quarantine” until May 31. 

The three heavily-populated areas account for more than 80 per cent of all confirmed coronavirus cases in the Philippines, which on Tuesday stood at 11,350, according to the Department of Health.

It added that 751 people have died from Covid-19, the disease caused by the virus.

Restrictions would also be modified to allow some industries and public transport to resume limited operations in a bid to boost the domestic economy, which contracted in the first quarter of the year, Roque said.

Individual travel is still only restricted to essential trips, while schools are to remain closed in the three affected areas for the time being.

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“The injunctions given by the government … [are] intended for your protection,” President Rodrigo Duterte said in a televised address.

“If you get Covid-19, they will bring you to the hospital, and the bed they will give you was just cleaned one hour before because someone died there. And you will be the next one.”

“I'm not trying to scare you,” he added. “But that is what will happen if you do not follow the precautionary measures.”

Elsewhere, restrictions in areas with a moderate to low infection risk have been either eased or lifted altogether.

Still, Duterte stressed people must still wear face masks and maintain a physical distance from others in public places to prevent a second or third wave of infections.

“This is the new life, until such time that there is a vaccine,” he said. “The easing of restrictions doesn't mean there is no more Covid-19. Covid-19 is very lethal. Do not gamble with it.”

Roque said an inter-agency task force overseeing the government's response to the outbreak was in the process of identifying the industries that would be allowed to open by May 16.

“The lockdown had a huge impact against Covid-19, but it also had a huge impact on the economy,” he said. “Government resources are limited, so we need to generate income for a long-term fight.”

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The government stressed that the easing of restrictions and the lifting of the quarantine in low-risk areas, mostly provinces in the southern Philippines, did not mean that the threat had ended.

“We are not saying that we have already controlled [the outbreak],” said health undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire. “Although an area might be identified or classified as low risk, they still need to implement the minimum health standards.”

“We are trying to avoid the possibility of a second wave, that's why we are shifting or transitioning … and it's not an abrupt [lifting]," she added. “We can’t be complacent. We need to stay vigilant … so that we can prevent further infections.”