Police officers on a checkpoint in Barangay Alae, Manofo Fortich request passengers to subject to thermal check, foot bath and identification check as Bukidnon's enhanced community quarantine in response to Covid-19 goes under way. Those who cannot establish their residency are then asked to turn back. (Jigger J. Jerusalem/davaotoday.com)
On April 2, new cases surged to 15,310, the highest reported single-day tally in the country and in Southeast Asia since the start of the pandemic. Although the Department of Health (DOH) said this included the backlog of 3,709 cases from March 31, these figures look worse still. How did we get here and what are the ways forward?