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MANILA — President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday thanked his aides for keeping the coronavirus pandemic "in check", even as cases of COVID-19 continued to surge and put at risk the country's economic recovery.

"I also thank the men and women of the inter-agency task force on emergent infectious diseases and the national task force against COVID-19 for all the countless hours spent to keep the pandemic in check and for all the efforts it made to ensure the safety of our people,” Duterte said in his fifth State of the Nation Address.

Duterte delivered his penultimate SONA in front of 50 lawmakers and officials as local cases of COVID-19 hit 82,040. University of the Philippines experts earlier predicted that the country’s COVID-19 tally would hit 80,000 to 85,000 by the end of July.

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The World Health Organization earlier said the Philippines needed to boost contact tracing instead of re-imposing hard lockdowns to arrest the spread of COVID-19.

The government did "enough within its means" to combat the pandemic by boosting the healthcare system and rolling out cash aid to the most vulnerable Filipinos, Presidential Communications Secretary Martin Andanar said hours ahead of the SONA.

Duterte also thanked workers who ensured the steady supply of utilities and basic services, as well as lawmen and security guards who kept peace and order.

"You showed us kindness and selflessness. You gave us strength, you risked your own lines (sic) to serve the greater good in keeping the Filipino spirit of bayanihan," the President told pandemic frontliners.

Duterte commended local government units that "stepped up" and initiated own measures to help their constituents. He also urged local officials to “set aside partisan politics and selfish interests to do what is right and good for all.”

Watch a livestream of the SONA here:

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