CLARK FREEPORT -- A top official of the Clark International Airport Corporation (CIAC) said the state-run firm is targeting to vaccinate all of its employees next month.
CIAC president Aaron Aquino said they are also planning to purchase a COVID-19 Antigen Rapid Test equipment to regularly check the health conditions of their workers.
“This will be our two-pronged approach to fight COVID-19 at CIAC that while vaccines are generally working well, some fully-vaccinated individuals may still get infected because no vaccines are 100 percent effective,” Aquino said.
"We target to achieve a 100-percent fully vaccinated personnel by September and, thereafter, for a regular test among employees using a CIAC-owned equipment," he added.
As of August 16, around 91 percent or 142 out of 156 CIAC employees have already been injected with the Sinovac vaccine.
Aquino expressed gratitude to Secretary Vince Dizon, president of the Bases Conversion and Development Authority, who also serves as the country's testing czar, and to the officials of the Clark Development Corporation for including CIAC employees in their inoculation program.
“We’re grateful to President Rodrigo Duterte's testing czar (so) we’re awaiting Secretary Dizon's go signal for the purchase of the antigen test machine, a measure we believe is economical and a checking system to ensure a Covid-19-free workplace even if we have fully vaccinated personnel,” Aquino said.
Some 91 CIAC employees, or 58 percent, have been fully vaccinated while 51, or 33 percent, have been given their first dose and awaiting their second dose.
The employees were inoculated at the Clark One-Stop Government Center supervised by medical teams from CDC.
Aquino said the effort is CIAC’s way of contributing to the national government’s campaign against the virus.
“On a national scale, the inoculation process is a daunting task and so we hope by getting all of our staff fully vaccinated, and tested on a regular basis, we’ll be able to help government in its continued effort to fight COVID-19,” Aquino said.