Binay contradicts Palace: PH 'not winning' in pandemic battle

The Philippines is "not winning" in its fight to contain the coronavirus pandemic, Sen. Nancy Binay said Wednesday, contradicting a statement by Malacañang. 

Presidential Spokesman Harry Roque on Tuesday said the country "won" against the University of the Philippines' projected 40,000 COVID-19 cases by the end of June. Two senators and some social media users criticized Roque, saying UP is not the enemy. 

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"Parang it's too early to say that we are winning because if we are winning e di dapat may semblance of normalcy na tayo, lalong-lalo na dito sa Metro Manila," Binay told ANC. 

"Pero the mere fact that we're still under general community quarantine, ibig sabihin no'n we are not winning the battle," she added. 

(Perhaps it's too early to say that we are winning because if we are winning, we should have some semblance of normalcy, especially here in Metro Manila. But the mere fact that we're still under general community quarantine means that we are not winning the battle.) 

Why did Metro Manila, other cities stay under GCQ? #COVID19Quarantine https://t.co/dj5dTLEwHg

— ABS-CBN News (@ABSCBNNews) July 1, 2020

Local COVID-19 cases are still increasing, unlike in some neighboring countries like Vietnam, where the daily increase has fallen to zero, said the senator. 

The Philippines has also reached only half of its target of running 32,000 coronavirus tests daily and kits remain pricey, she said. 

• Philippines running 16,000 tests a day, half of 32,000 daily target: Palace

ANC, July 1, 2020