JOEY DALUMPINES/PRESIDENTIAL PHOTO
President Rodrigo Duterte lauded his government’s Covid-19 response on Monday, saying it has improved over time.
“I am happy to note that there is an improvement in all aspects of the fight against Covid,” Duterte told chief implementer of the country’s National Action Plan against Covid-19 Carlito Galvez Jr.
“So meaning to say that we are working, we are succeeding, and everything is — everybody is putting his effort, sweat dito sa trabaho. I’d like to thank you,” he added.
Duterte last month signed “Bayanihan to Recover as One Act” or Bayanihan 2 into law. The measure consists of P140 billion in regular appropriations and P25.5 billion in standby funding to be used in Covid-19 response and recovery.
The Philippines has recorded 359,169 Covid-19 cases as of Monday, of which 42,191 were active cases.
The country remains among the top 20 countries with the most number of infections.
Department of Health (DOH) data as of Oct. 18 showed that 82.8 percent of cases were mild; 11.5 percent were asymptomatic or not showing symptoms; 1.9 were severe and 3.7 percent were critical.
The country has also started reopening its tourist hotspots, shortening curfew hours and relaxing quarantine restrictions nationwide.
The DOH reported the first case of Covid-19 in the country, a 38-year-old female Chinese national, last Jan. 30. The first local transmission was recorded on March 7. John Ezekiel J. Hirro