PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte ordered the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) on Wednesday, November 3, to sanction local government unit (LGU) chief executives who fail to use the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) vaccine doses provided to them in “the most expeditious manner.”
During his Talk to the People Address, Duterte said they have seen “fault lines” in the overall vaccination drive and that he was not contented with the rollout.
“I will hold each and every LGU accountable for this...Hindi ko malaman saan nagkakamali bakit mahina ang paglabas ng bakuna. Dito sa NCR (National Capital Region) medyo okay. Sa regional level doon nagkakaroon ng medyo problema,” said Duterte.
"Noon walang bakuna, ngayon 'yung bakuna nandiyan na. Medyo hindi ako... medyo nakuntento to the sense I have reiterated my instruction to agencies to make sure that local government units will receive their daily jab performance so that our country can reach the target of one million jabs or more every day," he added.
Duterte also reiterated his order for the National Task Force Against Covid-19 chief Carlito Galvez Jr., as well as the police and military to provide all the necessary support for the LGUs, particularly in the delivery of the vaccine doses and mobilization of resources.
“Sabi ko gamitin ang mga air assets ng PNP (Philippine National Police), AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines) pagdating sa pag-deliver,” he said.
Galvez recognized the problem on logistics, distribution and mobilization particularly in the municipal and barangay level, but he said it is already being addressed.
“Hinihimok natin ang mga LGU na palakasin ang kanilang capacity para magkaroon ng higher capacity on doing the jab per day and at the same time, they procure their own cold chain system para makapag-imbak sila ng kanilang mga bakuna,” he said.
Galvez said at present, there were around 49 million vaccine doses on stockpile.
The PNP and AFP earlier deployed some of their medical reserved forces to assist in the vaccination drive.
Both air and sea assets of the said agencies are also being used for the delivery of the vaccines.
The police and military were also taking part to secure the delivery of vaccines in the vaccination sites.
PNP Chief Guillermo Eleazar also ordered police units to take advantage of the power of social media in educating the public about the benefits of the vaccines and encourage them to get their jabs.
Duterte said the government is targeting to administer one million jabs per day.
Galvez said starting November 20, they are aiming to achieve 1 to 1.5 million jabs per day.
He said they are also “hoping” to administer 15 million Covid-19 vaccine shots before the end of November, including the booster shots for around 1.5 healthcare workers.
Galvez said they are also targeting to fully vaccinate at least 90 percent of teachers, students and school personnel, while at least 70 percent of senior citizens.
In order to do this, Galvez said they are looking at establishing more vaccination sites by utilizing the malls, universities, schools, gyms, camps and function halls of the government.
As of November 1, Galvez said a total of 59,316,764 Covid-19 vaccines have already been administered.
A total of 27,360,873 individuals have been fully vaccinated while 31,955,891 received the first dose.
Galvez said the number of fully vaccinated individuals represents 35.47 percent of the 70 percent of the total targeted population.
The country has so far received a total of 102,212,560 Covid-19 vaccines since February. (SunStar Philippines)