Senator Risa Hontiveros has urged the National Task Force on COVID-19 (NTF) and the Department of Health (DOH) to release a vaccine tracker immediately so that the public can view the progress of the National Vaccination Program after the country contracted another loan of $900 million for vaccines.
“Ang taumbayan ang magbabayad ng mga utang na iyan. A vaccine tracker updated daily and accurately will be especially important when we start receiving the vaccines we paid for,” Hontiveros said.
“We should be able to see that our money is being put to good and efficient use.”
“Magiging money trail din natin ito para malaman kung saan napupunta ang bilyun-bilyong pisong inutang natin. We should be able to see that our money is being put to good and efficient use,” the legislator added.
The lawmaker said the public has the right to know the progress of vaccination amid their increasing anxiety due to the recent surge in COVID-19 cases.
“Yet again, we are mostly left in the dark. Dalawang linggo na ang nakalipas, pero ang labo pa rin ng mga bilang tungkol sa pagbabakuna. Ilan na ang nabakunahan at babakunahan pa lang na health workers at essential frontliners? Habang tumataas ang mga kaso ng COVID-19, lalong dapat maging accountable ang NTF sa bilis o bagal ng vaccination,” the lady senator said.
She said that the publicly accessible and verifiable vaccine tracker should be easily understood by all.
Hontiveros stressed it must contain information on which vaccines have arrived or have yet to arrive, their quantity, and where and how many vaccines have been distributed.
The tracker should also include who have been vaccinated, as well as other vaccination schedules and deadlines.
“The vaccine tracker will be an important tool to regain trust among the public. Aside from being able to clearly see where we are or the progress of vaccination, this could show that the NTF is committed to transparency and accountability throughout the whole process,” she pointed out.
“The tracker would serve as an important guide to improvement.”
Hontiveros also said that the tracker would serve as an important guide to improvement also when the vaccination program moves on to senior citizens, who still do not know which vaccine is approved for them.
“Is there something slowing down the vaccination? Before we begin vaccinating seniors, we need to iron everything out: the masterlist, health screening and vaccine education. Lalo na marami sa seniors natin ay immunocompromised, hinding hindi tayo pwede magkulang sa paghahanda,” she remarked.
“A vaccine tracker that is easy to understand is an important part of our response as we move forward. Especially now that we may find ourselves back to square one after a year of the pandemic, every measurement of accountability is crucial,” Hontiveros concluded.