LAWMAKERS on Thursday hit the National Task Force against Covid-19 for sitting on multiparty agreements (MPA) of local government units and the private sector for the procurement of vaccines.
During a hearing, House Committee on Economic Affairs Chairperson Sharon Garin of AAMBIS-OWA and House Deputy Speaker Rufus Rodriguez noted the delays in the signing of MPAs by vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr. and Health Secretary Francisco Duque III for the purchase of Covid-19 vaccines.
“I am really concerned, there are pending MPAs with you and you have not signed it. The cities, the provinces have already given to you. They’re receiving no answer from your office,” Rodriguez told Galvez.
“These are money of the private entities and of the LGUs. We also have local autonomy. The MPAs should be signed and help them be able to get good pricing and even help them to get the supply,” he added.
Rodriguez also asked the national government to respect local autonomy.
“The national government is playing God here. They say they want to protect the LGUs, but the LGUs are protecting themselves. They have local autonomy. They know better how to protect their money. Secretary Galvez says we want to protect the LGU with the use of their money,” Rodriguez said.
For her part, Garin said there are already a number of LGUs and 300 private sector companies which have availed and signed the MPAs through the DOH and Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Disease (IATF) to procure the vaccines with an estimated 10 million doses for their constituencies, as provided for in Republic Act 11525.
Garin said RA 11525 or the Covid-19 Vaccination Program Act of 2021 was enacted to address the adverse impact of Covid-19 through the procurement and administration of safe and effective vaccines by the national government.
She said it also provides the legal mechanism for LGUs and the private sector to source and procure, through the DOH and the task force, safe and effective Covid-19 vaccines.
RA 11525 recognizes the role of LGUs and the private sector in the vaccination program and allows LGUs and the private sector to procure Covid-19 vaccines through the DOH and NTF via MPAs.
“Considering the recent surge of Covid-19 cases attributed to the more transmissible Delta variant and the confirmation of the first local case of the Lambda variant in the country, all efforts and support to ramp-up vaccination against Covid-19 should be welcomed and acted upon promptly by the concerned government agencies,” Garin said.
In other countries, Garin noted, leaders in government and private sector are signing deals with manufacturers despite the lack of supply.
“Our last order was July 15. Everybody knows there’s a shortage but there are still orders coming in,” Garin said.
Galvez explains
For his part, Galvez said they could not sign MPAs without a direct contract and date of delivery from vaccine manufacturers.
“One, you cannot sign an MPA without a direct contract and no definite supply because this is included in the payment of terms. That is due diligence. Second, even we have signed our contract, no supply will come to vaccinate because the supply will come in 2022,” Galvez said.
“Even I have signed, there will be no supply because there’s domestic problem in India,” he added.
Currently, Galvez also said vaccine manufacturers are not interested for MPAs as “it has become complicated and the coordination is too messy.”
“After the agreement with Manila, the Chinese ambassador and Sinovac said they will not anymore entertain any multilateral agreements,” he said.
With the expected arrival of 61 million vaccines this month and in October, Galvez, meanwhile, said the government can have 70 percent fully-vaccinated people in high-risk areas by the end of October.
Boosters
However, Iloilo Rep. Janette Garin said the government should prioritize the administration of a third dose over herd immunity.
“The third dose is what available now, therefore we should allow LGUs and private sector to procure [vaccines]. They might be able to save us. Because if you talk about herd immunity—am sorry, even if 100 percent [of the people] are vaccinated for two doses there’s no herd immunity to talk about because of the Delta variant,” she added.
Garin also expressed concern over DOH’s budget proposal for next year, particularly the categorization of the P45-billion Covid-19 booster program under unprogrammed funds.
Unprogrammed items are only funded if the revenue collection of the government exceeds the target.
Earlier, the DOH explained that it was the DBM’s decision to place the Covid-19 booster program under unprogrammed funds pending the approval of the government’s technical panel on the use of Covid-19 booster shots.
The DOH said it proposed a P104-billion Covid-19 booster budget, but DBM slashed the proposal to P45 billion and placed it under unprogrammed funds.
Image courtesy of AP/Rahmat Gul