Former adviser urges continued GCQ for Metro Manila

A former adviser to the Inter-Agency Task Force, Dr. Tony Leachon, urged the government to keep Metro Manila under General Community Quarantine (GCQ) due to a downward trend in COVID-19 cases.

Leachon cited that cases in the Philippines decreased from 4,300 to 2,900 between August 12 and September 23, with the reproductive number at .82, and in NCR specifically from 2,006 to 1,002, with a reproductive number of .74.

However, he warned that easing the quarantine to a Modified General Community Quarantine (MGCQ) could lead to a surge.

Leachon pointed out that Metro Manila's positivity rate, while down from 15% in August to 10%, is still far from the World Health Organization's ideal benchmark of 5%.

He stressed that this indicates ongoing local transmission and that prematurely relaxing restrictions could risk the progress made over the past eight months.

Leachon advised that a sustainable flattening of the curve requires maintaining current restrictions for about two more months.