Lea Salonga couldn’t help but feel “frustrated and defeated” after the country logged its highest tally of daily COVID cases in almost six months on Thursday (March 11).
The Broadway icon was reacting to the latest COVID figures in the Philippines after the Department of Health (DOH) recorded 3,749 new infections on Thursday, bringing the total number of active coronavirus cases to 47,769.
Lea said in a Facebook post: “3,749 cases today. Not gonna lie, when I see numbers going up like this, I feel frustrated and defeated.”
She added, “We were doing so well, what the hell happened? Were our efforts to stay home and stay safe all for nothing? Was the sacrifice of so many millions of people all for nothing? What is happening? Trying to remain patient as well as optimistic, but this is not easy. And I honestly don’t know what else we can do.”
On Twitter, Lea urged her followers to continue observing health protocols.
“If you can stay home, please do. If you have to go out, stay as safe as you possibly can. This isn’t over yet,” she said.
Earlier, The STAR said that the OCTA Research Group of the University of the Philippines has linked the rise to the new and more infectious UK and South Africa COVID-19 variants.
The DOH has acknowledged the marked increase in cases but said that public’s complacency and non-compliance with health protocols contributed to the surge.
DOH spokesperson Dr. Maria Rosario Vergeire last March 8 said, “The underlying cause of why cases are increasing (is) the non-compliance to the health protocols that we have.”
“Marami tayong nakikitang naka-mask pero nasa baba. Naka-face shield pero nasa ulo nila, di naka cover sa mukha at sa ilong at sa bibig. Marami tayong nakikita pumupunta sa matataong lugar at iba-iba pang kelangan nating iwasan.
“As long as our public would not be able to comply with the minimum health protocols that are there, the interventions, andyan na po ‘yung posibilidad na dadami at dadami ang kaso. And ngayon dumating yung variants, this has aggravated this increase in the cases.”
Meanwhile, the country is now approaching the first anniversary of when the entire Luzon was placed under the Enhanced Community Quarantine to prevent the spread of the virus.
On Thursday, it was announced that the entire Metro Manila will adopt a uniform two-week curfew starting March 15, from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m., to address the sharp rise in COVID-19 cases.
To date, the country has recorded a total of 607,048 confirmed cases, 546,671 recoveries and 12,608 deaths.
