OCTA Research fellow, professor Ranjit Rye on Wednesday, March 24 proposed the implementation of "soft" modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ) as a "last resort" if the current government interventions fail to address the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

"Naintindihan namin ang sitwasyon ng gobyerno, kailangang balansehin ang ekonomiya at saka ang kalusugan. (We understand the situation of the government, we need to balance the economy and public health)," Rye said during the Laging Handa public briefing.

"Pero lumalabas po ay pataas pa rin po iyong kaso natin. May momentum kasi siya. So hintayin natin ang ilang araw, let’s give the bubble a chance. Pero kung pataas pa rin siya after next week eh mukhang kailangan na tayong mag isip-isip ng mas istrikto pang quarantine classification. (But it seems the number of cases is still going up. It  has gained momentum. So let’s wait a few days, let’s give the bubble a chance. But if it is still increasing after next week, it looks like we need to think about a stricter quarantine classification)," he said.

Rye said the group recognizes the government efforts to control the spread of the virus by implementing the "NCR Plus" bubble but expressed concern that it may not be as effective not to overwhelm the hospitals' COVID bed capacity.

"To be very brutally frank, iyong sa ating mga pag-aaral, mukhang mahihirapan tayo kasi grabe iyong momentum ng ating surge. Hindi naman natin inaasahan na ganito kabilis iyan at ganito kagrabe ang pagkalat. (Based on our studies, it looks like we will have a hard time because the momentum of our surge is immense. We didn't expect it to spread so fast and so badly)," he explained.

"Itong interventions natin ngayon, best efforts, it will take some time mga maybe three to four weeks bago may effect. (Our interventions now, best efforts, it will take some time maybe three to four weeks before it takes effect)," he added.

Rye said OCTA Research Group is proposing a soft MECQ where there is "very significant mobility restriction."

"So iyon ay last resort natin kapag hindi nag-work itong interventions ng gobyerno. At ipinagdadasal din namin, at alam namin sa bayanihan baka talagang mapahina na ito. (So that is our last resort if government interventions do not work. And we are also praying for it, and we know with the bayanihan spirit, the virus might really weaken)," he added.

He said the goal is to reduce the number of infections, and not overwhelm hospitals.

Rye also underscored the importance of following minimum public health standards, such as wearing of face masks and face shield, washing of hands regularly, and practicing physical distancing, as well as avoiding mass gathering.

Ang simple lang naman na sinasabi ng siyensya. Magsuot ka ng mask, magsuot ka ng face shield kasi iyong combo na iyan para kang nakabakuna niyan eh, more than 90 percent ang proteksiyon niyan. (What the science is telling us is simple. Wear face mask, wear face shield because that combo is just like you have been vaccinated, which has more than 90 percent protection)," Rye said.

"So, we are hoping that with all of these interventions currently being implemented that we will not anymore move to MECQ. We’re hoping that, well, let’s try to make this bubble work. But it would require incredible cooperation, high degree of cooperation between civil society, the private sector, and government," he added.