“WE HEARD the clamor and we support them.”
So said House Minority leader Joseph Stephen Paduano on the request of local government units for authority to directly buy vaccines without public bidding.
“This is the rationale behind House Bill (HB) 8648,” Paduano said, adding that, “the fact that the three leaders of the House are the principal authors of the bill signifies that this is a priority measure.”
HB 8648 has already been approved by the House Committee on Appropriations.
The Abang Lingkod party-list lawmaker emphasized that “the proposed measure will authorize LGUs to procure vaccines that have FDA (Food and Drug Administration) approval only. That is enough guarantee that the vaccines to be procured by LGUs are safe and effective.”
“This way, we will be able to achieve herd immunity in the soonest time possible. LCEs (local chief executives) of LGUs are in a better position to convince their constituents when the vaccines they procure are of their own choosing. Logistics issues will be handled by suppliers and no longer the burden of the government bureaucracy. A deeper analysis of this proposed measure would reveal that this will augment the centralized vaccine program to ensure that private enterprises will mobilize resources in the delivery and storage of vaccines. This will put the LGUs’ funds to good use,” the Minority Leader said.
He said the bill will help ensure that red tape will no longer be a hindrance to what every Filipino is wishing for, “a faster way for vaccines to arrive in our country.”
“This will augment scarce resources of the national government and this will show a whole nation approach in addressing this pandemic,” he added.
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