Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 7) — A lawmaker said the government must prioritize its funds for the procurement of COVID-19 vaccines, saying it must keep its focus on the inoculation of Filipinos.
“The inoculation of 70 million or more Filipinos should take the highest priority in funding and not the anti-insurgency program or the creation of an agency,” Senator Franklin Drilon said in a statement on Monday.
Drilon earlier questioned the government’s spending priorities amid the COVID-19 pandemic, noting the “hasty” release of over ₱10 billion to the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict.
In the statement, Drilon said a “cash sweep” could be done, adding there were some items in the General Appropriations Act that can be used for pandemic response.
“Kailangan walisin ‘yung mga ahensya na hindi naman ginagamit ang pera. Ibili na lang ng bakuna kaysa pinapatulog ang pera,” Drilon said.
[Translation: They should look at agencies that don’t use their funds. Use the money to buy vaccines instead of letting it sit idle.]
Among the agencies mentioned by the senator are the Philippine International Trading Corp. and the Department of Public Works and Highways.
In its latest update, the Department of Health said 5,965,651 vaccine doses have been administered as of June 6. Of this number, over 1.5 million have been fully vaccinated.
Meanwhile, the vaccination of essential workers in areas frequently experiencing case surges began on June 7.
