Manila reports 17 new COVID-19 cases

Manila City Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso reported 17 new COVID-19 cases in the city, bringing the total number of cases to 30.

In his city address on Tuesday, Domagoso said two of the confirmed cases are admitted at Sta. Ana Hospital while the rest are confined in private hospitals in Manila.

The city mayor also said there are now 89 persons under investigation (PUIs) in the country’s capital.

There were only 13 confirmed cases and 76 PUIs less than 24 hours prior.

Meanwhile, the local chief executive also announced that PH67, a 23-year-old woman who was admitted at Sta. Ana Hospital, has already tested negative for the disease and can now be discharged.

Domagoso said that the sudden jump in COVID-19 cases in the city may have resulted from residents who took the situation lightly and refused to follow the guidelines set by the local government.

Some were even drunk or throwing birthday parties by barangay officials and the police, he said.

“Ang dahilan po nito ay ‘yung mga nangyari pa lamang sa mga nagdaang linggo. Ngayon palang natin nararamdaman ang bigat ng problema sa kalaban na si COVID-19,” the city mayor said. (This is due to what happened in the weeks prior. We are just experiencing the gravity of the problem that is COVID-19.)

“Para bang binabalewala natin ang panawagan ng pamahalaan na social distancing, quarantine, mga gawain na dapat sinusunod ng mga mamamayan. Kaya hindi kami nagtataka na tuloy na naglalago ito,” he added.

 
(It’s as if they are ignoring the calls of the government to practice social distancing, undergo quarantine, practices that the public should comply with. That is why we are not surprised that the number of COVID-19 cases is increasing.)

The local chief executive again called on residents to comply with the 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. curfew and to refrain from unnecessarily going out of their houses to contain the spread of the disease.

“Hindi lang po kalaban ng pamahalaan si COVID-19. Kalaban ng taong bayan. Kalaban niyo rin,” he said. (COVID-19 is not only the government’s enemy, it is also the public’s enemy. It is also your enemy.)

The number of COVID-19 cases in the country swelled to 552 after the Department of Health reported 51 new cases on Tuesday afternoon. The health department also reported 35 mortalities and 20 recovered patients.