Northern Mindanao has a local COVID-19 transmission rate of 91 percent, the region’s Department of Health (DOH) said Tuesday.
On Monday, the region recorded 230 new virus infections, taking active cases to 2,922 out of a total 25,511 infections, DOH data showed.
“One month ago, our situation was not like this. We had many recovered patients and only 10 percent active cases,” DOH-Northern Mindanao regional director Dr. Jose Llacuna Jr. said in an interview on ABS-CBN’s Teleradyo.
About a third of the cases are in Cagayan de Oro City, where hospital capacity is at “high-risk,” Llacuna added.
Cagayan de Oro City has been placed under a modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ), the second toughest lockdown level, until June 15 to curb coronavirus infections, Llacuna said.
“More crowded places are more prone to super spreader events,” he said. “We’re campaigning hard with the people to please cooperate with the government.”
Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said 25 percent of the country’s COVID-19 cases are in Mindanao.
“There are many factors: the public’s mobility, compliance to health protocols and presence of COVID-19 variants,” she said.
Northern Mindanao has reported the new COVID-19 variants first detected in the UK and South Africa, Llacuna said.
The province has vaccinated 88 percent of its health workers and 22 percent of its elderly, he added.
Data on inoculated persons with comorbidity has yet to be updated, he added.
“Implementation is not a problem here, we’re only waiting for [a] supply [of the vaccines],” he said.
More supplies of COVID-19 vaccines, meanwhile, were transported to the Visayas and Mindanao as the number of active cases continues to rise in these regions.
On Tuesday, flag carrier Philippine Airlines transported another shipment of vaccines to Tacloban, Davao and Iloilo.
PAL spokesperson Cielo Villaluna said Flight PR-1809 touched down at Davao International Airport at 6:11 a.m. with 44,800 doses of the China-made Sinovac vaccines.
She added flight PR-2981 landed at Tacloban Airport around 7:50 a.m. with 36,800 doses while flight PR-2141 carrying 59,400 doses arrived at the Iloilo Airport at 8:57 a.m.
“These essential flights form part of the cold-chain distribution of these sought-after vaccines which are highly critical in the country’s fight against COVID-19. We are proud to be a partner of the Philippine government in this endeavor,” Villaluna said.
The vaccines were part of the latest shipment of Sinovac vaccines cleared by the Bureau of Customs – Ninoy Aquino International Airport and transported to the Pharmaserv Cold Storage Facility located in San Roque, Marikina City.
PAL has airlifted close to 1 million doses from Manila to various parts of the country.
At least 2.4 million vaccine doses have been flown in by PAL to Manila from Beijing since March this year.
Meanwhile, six village officials have been charged for allowing super-spreader events in their areas of responsibility.
In a Cabinet meeting with President Rodrigo R. Duterte on Monday night, Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Eduardo Año said these super-spreader events include the incidents at the Gubat sa Ciudad Resort, Barangay 171 in Caloocan City; the Recreational Resort and Pool Operations in San Jose, Navotas City; boxing matches in Barangay 181 and 182 in Gagalangin, Tondo, Manila; the incident at the Bakas River in Barangay Matictic, Norzagaray, Bulacan; Barangay Balabag, Boracay Island and Barangay Sambiray, both in Malay, Aklan; and the Club Holic Bar and Restaurant in Barangay Kamputhaw, Cebu.
“We immediately acted on these and conducted an investigation. In the matrix, we have the data or the status of the cases that we filed against the officials of the villages who are responsible for the separate incidents of violations of public health and safety protocols,” he told Duterte.
In a separate interview with CNN Philippines on Tuesday, Año said he is also waiting for the official report of the Quezon City government regarding the May 25 food distribution event in Barangay Old Balara which allegedly violated health protocols.
“I am waiting for the report from QC LGU regarding their recommendation on this matter and if someone has to be charged, we will do it. I am also waiting for the report regarding Councilor Franz Pumaren. We really need to tighten enforcement of health protocols to stop the transmission and the village officials play a big role in this initiative,” Año said in a mix of English and Filipino.
Pumaren, who was summoned by the QC government over the incident, earlier said the unexpected heavy downpour during the event pushed the people falling in line to take cover. When the rain stopped, he said everyone tried to be ahead of the line, which caused them to be close to one another.
“I’m sure there are a lot of attendees there who can attest to what really happened, whether it really rained or not. We will see that through fact-finding and a thorough investigation,” Año said.
Año also said from a total of 64,516 violators apprehended from May 31 to June 6, 50,021 were apprehended for not wearing face masks, 613 for mass gatherings, and 13,882 for breach of physical distancing rules.
Of these violators, more than 1,700 have been charged in court, Año said.
Last week, the DILG, Department of Justice (DOJ), and the Philippine National Police (PNP) issued a joint memorandum circular (JMC) on dealing with violations of health and safety ordinances, and quarantine-related violations during the pandemic.
Under the guidelines, Año said the DILG will require local government units (LGUs) and the PNP to establish holding areas where the violators will be brought.
Meanwhile, the DOJ has instructed prosecutors to immediately process and issue resolutions on the inquest investigations of law enforcement agents, to make sure that the violators do not stay too long in jail.
The inquest prosecutors have to determine if the arrest of these violators is valid and legal since these are warrantless arrests.
The Philippines logged 4,777 new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday, bringing the total number of cases to 1,280,773, the DOH said.
This is the first time that fewer than 5,000 cases were reported in 13 days.
The DOH reported 95 new fatalities, bringing the death toll from COVID-19 to 22,064.
The DOH also reported 7,122 persons who recently recovered, bringing the total recoveries to 1,202,257.
Active cases stood at 56,452, of which 93.2 percent were mild, 2.5 percent were asymptomatic, 1.3 percent were critical, 1.7 percent were severe, and 1.19 percent were moderate.
The DOH also reported that, nationwide, 58 percent of the ICU beds, 49 percent of the isolation beds, 49 percent of the ward beds, and 38 percent of the ventilators, were in use.
In Metro Manila, 53 percent of the ICU beds, 39 percent of the isolation beds, 37 percent of the ward beds, and 35 percent of the ventilators, were in use.
In other developments:
* The Palace said on Tuesday it was unfair to compare the COVID-19 situation in President Duterte’s hometown of Davao City and Quezon City, which has consistently recorded high figures of coronavirus infections since the start of the pandemic. The most populous
Philippine city, Quezon City has regularly been among areas that tally the highest COVID-19 cases daily. But the OCTA Research group warned Davao City has logged a 54 percent growth rate in cases and could surpass Quezon City’s new coronavirus infections. “I don’t think it’s a fair comparison,” Palace spokesman Harry Roque said in a press briefing.
* In his weekly address Monday night, the President said the government may carry out stricter measures against people disregarding health precautions and quarantine restrictions due to rising numbers of Filipinos violating these protocols. Duterte observed that many people are not following government rules, especially in the Visayas and Mindanao. “We might calibrate our response to the intransigence that you will show,” he said.