Vice President Leni Robredo’s office, in partnership with the City Government of Manila under the leadership of Mayor Isko Moreno, rolled out its two-day Vaccine Express on Tuesday, June 22, to bring vaccination to target sectors and communities. (Photo by Charlie Villegas / OVP)
MANILA, Philippines — Vice President Leni Robredo on Wednesday said the Office of the Vice President (OVP) is “very much willing” to extend the “Vaccine Express” initiative in Visayas and Mindanao to help address the surge of COVID-19 cases there.
Robredo made the remark in response to the appeal of Cagayan De Oro representative and House Deputy Speaker Rufus Rodriguez to expand the program to Visayas and Mindanao.
“@RepRufus We are very much willing. Will ask our team to coordinate with yours” Robredo said as an answer to the tweet sent by DzBB Super Radyo.
@RepRufus We are very much willing. Will ask our team to coordinate with yours.
— Leni Robredo (@lenirobredo) June 23, 2021
The Cagayan de Oro City representative said that pandemic response measures such as vaccination should be directed at provinces seen as areas of concern since the number of cases in the capital region are starting to stabilize.
“The vice president should include cities in Mindanao and Visayas such as Cagayan de Oro and Iloilo where COVID-19 cases are increasing, instead of Manila, which has already given so much vaccines to its residents,” Rodriguez said in his statement.
Rodriguez likewise emphasized OCTA research group’s data, highlighting several cities in Mindanao and Visayas as areas of concern.
The deputy speaker cited the latest OCTA assessment that “shows the severity of the pandemic in areas outside imperial Metro Manila, which has been receiving much of the attention of the national government and the bulk of COVID-19 vaccines.”
“Let us not ignore the situation in the provinces. And let us not forget that Metro Manila is not safe as long as there are people in areas outside the capital region getting the virus,” Rodriguez said.
The House leader made the appeal a day after Robredo launched her latest pandemic response intervention in partnership with the city government of Manila.
READ: LOOK: OVP kickstarts ‘vaccine express’ drive in Manila
After administering doses to at least 2,000 drivers and riders in Manila as part of the vaccination rollout to citizens under the A4 category, Robredo and Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso said they plan “to continue the initiative to bring vaccination to vendors in Manila City.”
More than 2,000 vaccinated sa Day 1 ng ating OVP #VaccineExpress sa Manila! Ang saya makita ng ngiti ng mga TODA at pedicab drivers at delivery riders na nakapagpabakuna sa ating drive-thru service💪🏼 pic.twitter.com/p157W8ISK7
— Leni Robredo (@lenirobredo) June 22, 2021
As of June 21, the Department of Health reported that 526,896 citizens under the A4 category have been administered their first vaccine doses while 8,086 are fully vaccinated. Faith Yuen Wei Ragasa, Inquirer.net trainee
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