MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines on Thursday recorded 8,276 additional COVID-19 cases, bringing the total number of infections to 1,028,738. Metro Manila and four nearby provinces will remain under Modified Enhanced Community Quarantine until May 14, President Rodrigo Duterte decided. Santiago City in Isabela province, as well as the provinces of Quirino and Abra will remain under MECQ for the whole of May. Another half a million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine developed by Chinese drugmaker Sinovac Biotech have arrived in the Philippines. Beijing and Moscow have stepped up "state-sponsored disinformation" campaigns denigrating Western-developed vaccines against Covid while promoting their own, the European Union said.

Source: Philippine Star April 29, 2021 08:03 UTC