Zambo to get more Covid vaccines

 ‘Mayor Beng’s pandemic response commended’ 

THE NATIONAL Government’s Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-MEID) said it will send more Covid-19 vaccines to Zamboanga City in an effort to further augment and support the local government’s response to the pandemic.

Secretary Vince Dizon, the Deputy Chief Implementer of the IATF-MEID policies, with Mayor Beng Climaco in Zamboanga City during a meeting. Also in the photo is Baguio City Mayor Benjamin Magalong. (Bong Serondo)

Secretary Vince Dizon, the Deputy Chief Implementer of the IATF-MEID policies and his team was in Zamboanga City recently and met behind doors with the members of the Regional IATF-MEID led by the Department of the Interior and Local Government, and the Zamboanga City Task Force on Covid-19 chaired by Mayor Beng Climaco. 

Dizon discussed the rising number of Covid-19 cases in Zamboanga City and assured Climaco of the strong support of the national government by augmenting the allocation of vaccines in an effort to swiftly inoculate at least 700,000 residents and achieve herd immunity. “Only through vaccination, people will be amply protected against coronavirus amidst the surge in infections,” he said. 

Thousands of senior citizens and people with comorbidity (those with more than one disease or condition at the same time) have been inoculated against Covid-19 in Zamboanga City as the local government continues its mass vaccination program despite the lack of supply of the medicine needed to prevent the further spread of the virus. 

Climaco has repeatedly urged residents - especially the elderly sector and those with comorbidity - to register online. She said residents who are 18-years old and above are also encouraged to register online - www.zambocovax.com or by visiting the nearest health center.

Health workers, Climaco added, are also conducting house-to-house visits in different barangays to get the names of those who want to be vaccinated and include them in the vaccination master list.

AstraZeneca

The mayor, who already signed a $2 million (or roughly P100 million) deal with the British-Swedish multinational pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca, said the local government’s vaccination program will cover 694,696 residents or 70% of the projected 2021 population of 992,423 inhabitants. The initial P200 million for the purchase of the vaccines are included in the P4.38-billion 2021 Executive Budget of the local government, according to Climaco, who is also a member of the Committee on Vaccine Availment of the League of Cities of the Philippines.

Climaco said the local government will allocate P100 million more for additional Covid vaccines. The City Health Office and representatives from the World Health Organization (WHO) continue to monitor the vaccination program in different inoculation sites here.  Based on the latest data, nearly 17,000 people from priority groups A1 (Medical frontliners), A2 (Senior citizens) and A3 (People with comorbidity) had been inoculated.

The local health situation quickly changed after the IATF-MEID relaxed its travel protocols across the country and allowed people to go from one place to another without medical certificates and RT-PCR tests. Private and government hospitals here have put up additional Covid-19 wards to address the growing number of patients with the deadly respiratory disease, but it was not even enough. And Climaco ordered the construction of at least 1,000-bed isolation facilities so as not to overwhelm the hospitals. 

Dizon said they are also supporting stricter community quarantine measures in Zamboanga City and the ongoing construction of additional isolation facilities and the establishment of modular hospitals here. 

Good Job Mayor! 

Dizon’s team also commended Climaco and the local Covid-19 task force, for a “job well done” in the battle against the deadly respiratory disease. He said Secretary Carlito Galvez, in-charge of the government’s procurement of Covid-19 vaccines, also spoke with Climaco and assured the mayor that the Department of Health will send more vaccines to Zamboanga City. 

“I just want to confirm categorically that Secretary Galvez, our vaccine czar, spoke with Mayor Beng Climaco and committed to increase the number of vaccines to be deployed to Zamboanga City because of the growing cases, and more so because of the importance of Zamboanga to the economy of Region 9 (Zamboanga Peninsula).” 

“So committed na po yun, we will be coordinating with Mayor Beng and her team to ensure a steady flow of vaccines. We are also very happy that Mayor Beng and her team has demonstrated very efficient roll out of vaccines in the past couple of weeks despite the low supply that has been allocated. So thank you very much Mayor Beng, very clear po yong commitment ng national government sa Zamboanga City,” Dizon said. 

Anti-Climaco 

Dizon’s statement and commendation of Climaco’s Covid-19 response and her sincere effort to control the spread of the virus has left a sour taste in the mouth of the mayor’s foes and trolls. 

And they even questioned Dizon’s appreciation of the local government’s Covid-19 response efforts and spread fake news and false information on social media attacking Dizon and Climaco alike and undermining not only the local government’s efforts, but as well the IATT-MEID as well.

Processes 

Jay-R Candido, of the Office of the Civil Defense-Operations Center, said the Regional IATF-MEID headed by DILG Regional Director Paizal Abutazil, approves all recommendations by the Zamboanga Task Force on Covid-19 whether to place the city under stricter community quarantine or extend it. 

Candido said the OCD Task Force on Covid-19 headed by Regional Director Manuel Luis Ochotorena implements whatever orders or directives Regional IATF-MEID issues. He said Climaco can issue executive orders to further strengthen the Covid-19 health protocols and it does not need approval by the Regional IATF-MEID. 

“We are monitoring the Covid-19 cases in Zamboanga City, and also in Pagadian City, Zamboanga del Sur because of the spike in Covid cases,” he told the Zamboanga Post by phone from Pagadian City. (Zamboanga Post)

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