DELTA VARIANT IS IN ANTIQUE, SO WHY PLACE ILOILO UNDER ECQ?

THIS IS the question of Antique’s governor Dodod Cadiao. She finds the national inter-agency task force’s decision to place Iloilo city and province

Inday under enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) weird, to put it mildly.

Also, Dodod pointed out, the two Delta variant COVID-19 cases in Pandan, Antique were detected in May yet, nearly two months ago pa.

Inday “Those cases were already long ago. Not

Haslo! unless variant Antique

Nakalimutan na, matagal na. variant Iloilo,” she says.

na mag-imbento sila na kunyari may dito sa na naman And weirder still, Antique where the Delta variant was supposedly detected o may sa is only under the milder general community quarantine.

asked Dodod. The Ilonggos have the same question. And more. Why place Iloilo city and “Ano’ng nangyari?” Inday province under the strictest quarantine classification when lately, COVID-19 cases were observed to be dropping already. Even the Department of Health (DOH) in Region 6 says so. high-risk Iloilo. So where does the national task force get its data? Indi na kuno ang

says Dodod. Ridiculous, really. The Ilonggos have the same sentiment. “Medyo ‘yan nakakatawa na ‘yan,” Inday Say mo, Mayor Jerry? THE Philippine Genome Center can analyze ( genome sequencing) specimens for COVID-19 variants at only 750 samples each week.

This is the reason why it took the center almost two months to discover that two specimens sent to it from Pandan, Antique had the Delta variant of the COVID-9 virus.

The Department of Health and the national inter-agency task force should find a way to hasten the genome sequencing.

This very slow pace of genome sequencing is placing the country at higher risk of the Delta variant community transmission.

delayed detection, delayed response.