FINANCE Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III on Monday expressed optimism that Metro Manila’s shift to a looser quarantine status will happen sooner, but the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda), which has been pushing for this, sounded a cautious tone. It now prefers to await more substantial vaccine deployment data before reviving its pitch.
“I believe so,” Dominguez told reporters when asked if the shift to modified general community quarantine (MGCQ), at least for Metro Manila, is more likely by April.
Dominguez, who heads the Economic Development Cluster, made the remark after President Duterte said late Sunday night that he will reopen up the economy once the country gets 2 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines. A day after receiving China’s donation of 600,000 doses of CoronaVac vaccines from Chinese pharmaceutical firm Sinovac, the Philippine government on Monday started its vaccination drive.
Wait and see
Meanwhile, Acting Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Karl Kendrick T. Chua told the BusinessMirror that the shift to MGCQ is not the only condition that would allow the country to exit the recession.
Chua said apart from MGCQ, it is important to ensure that the number of Filipinos allowed to go outside their homes is expanded, and there is greater access to public transport.
“We will regularly review the health, economic, and vaccine data to make our next recommendation to the President. We need all three —MGCQ, expanding age group, and more public transport to make a strong and safe recovery,” Chua told this newspaper.
Chua said monitoring data such as sustained vaccine deployment or rollout is part of Neda’s process before making policy recommendations.
However, Chua expects to take up the MGCQ topic with the President immediately after the data on the vaccine is obtained.
As far as taking the jab is concerned, Chua said he and his wife are willing to be vaccinated with a Food and Drug Administration-approved vaccine. “Whatever vaccine the FDA says is good for our health and age group and following the priority order,” Chua told the BusinessMirror on Monday.
On Sunday, Duterte led the officials who witnessed the vaccines’ arrival at Villamor Air Base, from where they were brought by a convoy of vehicles to a warehouse in Marikina.
The 600,000 doses of Sinovac vaccines were airlifted by a Chinese Xi’an Y-20 military aircraft. Also welcoming the arrival of the vaccines at the VAB were Department of Health officials led by Secretary Francisco Duque III and Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro L. Locsin Jr.
National, local govt cooperation
According to Dominguez, the “national and local governments are working together with the private sector to assure that all adults are inoculated as soon as possible.”
On being vaccinated with Sinovac’s vaccine, Dominguez said he has the same position as Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, who said on Twitter that he would have wanted to be the first to receive the vaccine “to build trust and confidence among personnel,” but health experts advised that those over 59 should not be vaccinated with CoronaVac.
“I have the same message as Del Lorenzana,” said Dominguez, who is 75 years old.
Lorenzana is 72
Last week, Duterte rejected economic managers’ proposal to lower to MGCQ the community quarantine classification in Metro Manila and other areas under general community quarantine (GCQ) until the government starts its vaccination drive.
The Neda earlier proposed placing the entire country under MGCQ by March to address the growing hunger rate, poverty and income loss arising from the pandemic.
The encompassing MGCQ declaration, Neda said, would allow more businesses to resume their operations.
Due to Covid-19 induced lockdowns in 2020, the Philippine economy posted a contraction of 9.5 percent in pandemic year 2020, the worst performance on record since 1946. As of this month, areas which remain under GCQ include the NCR and Davao City.
Other areas under GCQ until the end of February are Batangas and Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR), which includes Abra, Apayao, Benguet, Baguio City, Ifugao, Kalinga, and Mountain Province for Luzon; Tacloban City for the Visayas; Davao del Norte, Lanao del Sur and Iligan City for Mindanao.
The rest of the country is already under MGCQ.