Virus cases soar after lockdown eased

More than 50,000 infections reported after lockdown eased

More than 50,000 infections have been reported in a troubling milestone for a country that has reopened with its economy on the brink of recession.

CONFIRMED coronavirus infections in the Philippines soared past 50,000 in a troubling milestone for a country that has reopened an economy on the brink of recession while still struggling to combat the pandemic.

The Department of Health reported 2,539 new cases, bringing the country’s total to 50,359, including 1,314 deaths.

The Philippines’ caseload is the second largest in South-East Asia.

President Rodrigo Duterte eased a tough virus lockdown in the Philippine capital of more than 12 million people on June 1 after the economy shrank slightly in the first quarter, its first contraction in more than two decades.

The downturn may be worse in the second quarter and usher in a recession, economic officials said.

“I think we have no alternative but to really reopen the economy,” presidential spokesman Harry Roque said.

“If we still can’t reopen, maybe we’ll stay alive but eventually die because we have no jobs,” he added.

Duterte suggested in remarks broadcast on Wednesday that he will be careful in further relaxing coronavirus restrictions, saying he could not be as bold as US President

Donald Trump and Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro.

“I’m sorry but I cannot really ... remove the leash,” Duterte said on TV, adding that if he allowed massive numbers of people back into the streets, the result might be “too horrible to ponder”.

The Philippines has been particularly battered as a leading source of global labour.

Aside from massive domestic job losses due to quarantine restrictions and business closures, the Philippines has scrambled to deal with tens of thousands of Filipinos who have flown home after losing overseas jobs.

Authorities shut Manila’s international airport for a week in May to allow time to decongest quarantine centres in the capital which have been overwhelmed by more than 24,000 returned workers.

Finding the balance between public health and reviving the economy has been fraught with dilemmas.

Officials acknowledge that the rising number of infections is a red flag but say it does not currently pose a high risk to a gradual resumption of economic activities if people follow mandatory health safeguards, including wearing face masks and social distancing. — AP