Despite low Covid-19 cases in the country, President Duterte said the existing face mask mandate would remain to help contain the spread of the virus, especially with the discovery of the new strain in Israel.
"The numbers are now very low compared to the population... But you know itong mask na ano maraming nagtatanong, alam mo (many have been asking and you know) I am not ready to order the removal of the mask," Duterte said during his "Talk to the People" address aired Tuesday, March 22.
"Pero siguro ‘yung plastic na ano cover puwede na ‘yun pero (Maybe the cover made of plastic we can remove it but) as I said, it has done a lot of good that prevented the contamination from spreading," he added.
Duterte noted that the ongoing pandemic may stay for long as new Covid-19 variants have been detected in other countries and may eventually reach the Philippines.
"So matagal pa ito (This will stay for long). And there are reports that I don’t know if it’s — subject to confirmation — that there is a new COVID found in Israel. So whether we like it or not, kung totoo ‘yan (if it is true), it will reach again the shores of our country," he added
The President likewise asked Congress to retain the unspent fund under the Bayanihan Law if ever it decides on new legislation. The money, he said, was returned to the National Treasury.
"Huwag galawin 'yan kasi (Retain the unspent fund because) that is in preparation for another surge of another variant. Nagmu-mutate itong monster na ito and hindi natin malaman kung ano talaga ang katapusan into (This monster is mutating and we don't really know when will this end). But I guess it would be there or here for the longest time," Duterte said.
During the same public address, Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said the country has recorded 3,431 new COVID-19 cases, or 490 new infections a day from March 15 to 21—lower than the 3,951 new cases recorded from March 8 to 14.
Duque also reported that infections are decreasing in the National Capital Region (NCR) with the recent daily average of 158 or five percent lower than the 166 cases per day recorded from March 8 to 14.
Aside from the strong adherence to the minimum public health standards, the DOH chief said that the country's wide vaccination coverage is another factor driving the drop in the number of infections.
As of March 2022, 72 percent of the target population is fully vaccinated, which is equivalent to 65 million Filipinos getting the full dose of the jab.