President Rodrigo Duterte has placed Bacolod City and Lanao del Sur under modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ) as the areas saw a spike in Covid-19 cases in recent days.
National Task Force Covid-19 Chief Implementer Carlito Galvez Jr., in a televised meeting with Cabinet members on Monday, said Lanao del Sur Governor Mamintal Adiong Jr. pleaded to raise the province’s quarantine classification amid increasing Covid-19 cases.
The province is also near Iligan City, which has been under MECQ since Sept. 1.
Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said Bacolod City had averaged more than 100 new cases daily in the past four days, prompting the recommendation of a stricter lockdown.
As of Sept. 7, Bacolod has tallied 1,635 total Covid-19 infections—the highest in in Western Visayas.
Metro Bulacan, Batangas and Tacloban City will remain under general community quarantine.
The rest of the country will also stay under modified general community quarantine.
The quarantine classifications are set to expire on Sept. 30.
The Philippines has logged 238,727 Covid-19 cases as of Sept. 7. John Ezekiel J. Hirro