The number of Covid-19 infections in the National Capital Region will continue to rise even if the reproduction number has declined, OCTA Research Group said on Monday.Senior Research Fellow Dr. Guido David said while the reproduction number in Metro Manila has decreased to 1.47, the effect of the lockdowns will not be seen until around three to four weeks later.'Nakikita natin, bumababa yung reproduction number or yung hawahan ng tao.... at nakikita natin na maari syang bumaba to less than 1 sa kalagitnaan ng September (We are seeing that the reproduction number is decreasing, and it may decrease to less than 1 in mid-September),' David told the Laging Handa briefing on Monday.He added that it is possible that the daily number of cases will reach the 25,000 mark.OCTA founder Professor Ranjit Rye said the enhanced community quarantine imposed early in August may have curbed the spread of the virus but the public should not be complacent especially with the reported community transmission of the Delta variant in the NCR and in the provinces of Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, and Quezon.
