BACOLOD City Mayor Evelio "Bing" Leonardia is assured that Bacolod City will receive a “much bigger allocation” of Covid-19 vaccines from the national government.
In his interview with CNN’s “The Final Word” anchored by Rico Hizon recently, Leonardia was asked if he, as mayor and as the national president of the League of Cities of the Philippines (LCP), feels “insecure” due to the supposed minimal attention that local government units (LGUs) outside Metro Manila are getting.
Leonardia said that there was such insecurity at the start but not so anymore.
“You know, Metro Manila is not the Philippines. Apparently, they listened to us. Secretary [Carlito] Galvez himself is seeing it through that we will get a much bigger allocation. That is what is happening now,” the mayor said.
The interview was conducted on the same day when the 2.2 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine arrived at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport.
According to Leonardia, he is still waiting for word from the national government as to how many of these Pfizer vaccines will be allocated for Bacolod.
The Pfizer vaccine is a “different breed” in the sense that it requires its own particular temperature conditions for proper storage, the mayor said.
Department of Health (DOH) Undersecretary Myrna Cabotaje earlier told Leonardia through a letter dated June 3, 2021, that Bacolod will be receiving additional vaccine allocation from the Western Visayas Center for Health Development.
Cabotaje, as chair of the National Vaccination Operations Center, also commended the vaccination efforts of the Bacolod City Government.
She expressed her “profound appreciation” for Leonardia’s “unending service to the Filipino people amidst the Covid-19 pandemic.”
From March 5 to June 11, 2021, the Bacolod City Emergency Operations Center–Task Force (EOC-TF) recorded a total of 42,173 doses of Covid-19 vaccines administered to Bacolodnons.
Of that total, 32,538 were for first doses, while the remaining 9,635 were for second doses, the EOC data showed.
As to the brand of vaccines administered, the data further showed that 21,885 doses were AstraZeneca vaccines while the 20,288 shots were of the Sinovac brand.
Leonardia earlier requested the Office of Secretary Carlito Galvez for additional Covid-19 vaccines in light of the sustained increase in the number of local cases in Bacolod.
In response, Galvez assured that Bacolod will be given enough doses to inoculate 100 percent of the City’s adult population and such shall be delivered “in accordance with the relevant existing laws, rules, and regulations.