VENEZUELA IMPLEMENTS UNIQUE FORMULA TO BATTLE COVID-19

Venezuela's Vice President Delcy Rodriguez on Friday (Saturday, June  6, 2020 in Manila) announced that health measures in 10 economic sectors will be eased with the application of the "7+7" formula, which means seven days of work and seven days of quarantine. So far, 10 sectors of the economy have had the formula of five working days plus ten days of quarantine (5+10), a TeleSUR report said.

President Nicolas Maduro, however, requested that the measure be extended to a 7+7 flexibilization formula. The industries covered by the relaxation program are transportation, banking, construction, medical and dental offices, hairdressing, textile and shoe industries, agriculture, mechanical workshops and personal services. Government is studying the incorporation of other sectors that were not included in the first stage of flexibilization under the "5+10" formula.

Venezuela has not registered a single fatality to COVID-19 for one month despite the blockade by the US and the attempted coup d’etat by US mercenaries and allies of Senator Juan Guaido, thanks to a political model based on sovereignty and social justice.

"The new quarantine must be carried out with rigor and discipline so we can gradually return to relative normality with excellent results," Rodriguez said and explained that municipalities under curfew and those located in border areas remain exempt from the "7+7" scheme. Last Friday, Venezuela registered only seven new COVID-19 cases due to community transmission. Meanwhile, 78 percent of 2,145 cases reported by the country are imported. "Venezuela's high level of community control has permitted the adoption of new flexibilities," Rodriguez concluded.