A Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) official stated Tuesday, July 20, that the enforcement of granular lockdown is the most preferred restrictive measure by local chief executives over the city or province-wide lockdowns amid the threat of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) Delta variant.
In a press briefing, DILG Undersecretary Epimaco Densing III said there should still be a balance between the country's health concern and the economy in dealing with the more contagious strain of COVID-19.
He explained that localized lockdowns will only be imposed in a certain barangay, street, or building with confirmed case in hopes that this measure will prevent the further spread of the virus.
“Hopefully ay ‘di nga kumalat itong Delta variant, medyo nakakatakot nga po ng kaunti. Kung matatandaan po ninyo dahil sa mga balita ang Indonesia dahil sa Delta variant ay nagkakakaroon na ng at least 50,000 infections a day at nobenta persyento ng bagong COVID-19 infection sa United Kingdom halimbawa ay dala po ng Delta variant (Hopefully, this delta variant won’t spread, it’s a little bit fearsome. If you remember the news, Indonesia due to the Delta variant already has at least 50,000 infections daily and 90 percent of the new COVID-19 infections in the United Kingdom for example are come from the delta variant),’’ Densing said.
As much as possible, Densing noted that the policy that would be implemented should not involve the lockdowns of provinces or big localities so as not to affect the economy.
Further, Densing said that there is a strong likelihood that a stern imposition of interzonal travel regulations will also be implemented on orders of President Duterte.
But before these travel restrictions are enforced, Densing noted that there will be dialogues with the governors and mayors specifically in the National Capital Region (NCR) and other highly urbanized areas due to the danger posed by the Delta variant.
With the far more dangerous variant, Densing emphasized the need for the health care systems to be prepared in case of an outbreak.
He noted that the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) has provided an assistance to them through the TUPAD program where individuals are hired for contact tracing purposes.