Gov’t critics politicizing vaccine rollout, procurement – President Duterte
Government critics are using the COVID-19 pandemic to score political points especially as the country gears towards the general election next year, President Rodrigo Roa Duterte said on Monday.
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President Rodrigo
Roa Duterte talks to the people after holding a meeting with the Inter-Agency
Task Force on the Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) core members at the
MalacaΓ±ang Golf (Malago) Clubhouse in MalacaΓ±ang Park, Manila on March 22,
2021. KING RODRIGUEZ/ PRESIDENTIAL PHOTO
“That’s what you would call the classic case of if you want to appear white, you paint the other guy black para ang labas mo puting-puti ka,” President Duterte said during his weekly public address on government response on COVID-19 pandemic.
“Si
Mr. Clean, parang ganoon. Ganoon ‘yan eh, style bulok.”
Presidential
spokesperson Harry Roque, who virtually joined the meeting with the President,
said administration critics have intensified their attacks as the country moves
towards the election next year by using the pandemic as an issue.
Roque
said if those detractors still have conscience, they should just help the
administration find a solution to the country’s present predicament instead of
using the pandemic for their selfish political gains.
Responding
to government critics, President Duterte said the money intended for vaccine
procurement is still with the lending banks and not with the government.
The
government would only make the payment once the vaccine manufacturers delivered
the jabs, he said.
“Iyan
po ay papel lang. And you know, if you are afraid of corruption, let your mind
go easy because these things are not susceptible to anything,” he said.
“The
money is in the hands of the bank and they collect ‘yong nagpabili sa atin ng
bakuna from the bank.”
The
government has allocated P82.5-billion total financing for vaccine procurement,
logistics and other supplies including waste disposal, Finance Secretary Carlos
Dominguez III said.
The
country’s vaccination rollout is funded by P2.5 billion from the Department of
Health budget, P10 billion from the Bayanihan 2 as well as other fund sources,
the finance chief said.
The
government has secured financing from the World Bank with P24.3 billion; Asian
Development Bank, P19.5 billion; and Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank,
P14.6 billion, Dominguez explained, adding government savings and official
development assistance (ODA) will also fund the vaccine procurement.
“Now,
P82.5 billion will buy us enough doses to inoculate 100 percent of our adult
population,” Dominguez said.
“So
ang total population natin is around 110 million. Ang below 18 is 40 million so
70 million lang to vaccinate. So that money, the 82 billion plus the private
sector and another 10 billion from the LGUs will be able to vaccinate all the
adults in the Philippines this year.” PND
