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Cavite Governor Jonvic Remulla on Monday said his province's current quarantine level would be "enough" to slow the spread of COVID-19, even as he appealed for more vaccines from the national government.

Home to some 3.6 million people, Cavite is under modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ), the second toughest of 4 lockdown levels, until Aug. 15.

Some 250 police vehicles are roving to monitor enforcement of health protocols, and residents are so far "very compliant," Remulla said.

"MECQ talaga ang gusto ko dahil ang ECQ ay napakahirap para sa bayan," said Remulla. "We think that we can manage the COVID cases if we take the necessary precautions."

(What I really want is MECQ because ECQ is too difficult.)

"MECQ is good enough, at least ang economy ay tumatakbo (the economy is running)."

The province's manufacturing sector alone employs 200,000 workers and supports 800,000 dependents. Each day lost in a potential lockdown in the sector "is a big loss for the province," said the governor.

Cavite has tallied 85,460 coronavirus infections, of which 5,067 active as of Aug. 8, according to the health department’s tracker.

The province has fully vaccinated against COVID-19 around 16 percent or 407,864 out of 2,441,502 eligible residents, Remulla said. This means Cavite on the average inoculates about 4 percent of the target population each month, he added.

If this pace continues, it will take 20 months before the province achieves herd immunity, the local chief executive said.

"We’re really trying to procure our own, and we’re really asking the help of the Department of Health, kay Secretary [Carlito] Galvez na dagdagan ang Cavite ng allocation ng vaccine dahil very critical ang area namin dito," Remulla said.

(We’re really asking the help of the Department of Health, Secretary Galvez to increase the vaccination allocation of Cavite because our area is very critical.)

Cavite eyes purchasing 1.5 million Novavax COVID-19 and another 1 million jabs on its own next year, he said.

"Hindi lang ho talaga tayo nakakakuha ng necessary allocation kaya gumagawa na po ng sariling paraan ang inyong lalawigan para kumuha ng sariling supply," Remulla said.

(We just don't get the necessary allocation, so your province is taking its own initiative to get our own supply.)