Lawmakers warn DILG: ‘No vax, no 4Ps subsidy’ illegal

RISK For some 4Ps beneficiaries suffering from certain illnesses and allergies, getting a jab is too big a risk. —MARIANNE BERMUDEZ

MANILA, Philippines — Senators criticized on Sunday a proposal by the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) to force indigents to get vaccinated so they could receive cash subsidies under the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program, or 4Ps, saying it was illegal and authorities should instead “use their imagination” to address vaccine hesitancy.

Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon said there was no law permitting the DILG’s proposal.

“It cannot be done without a law, and I will not agree to pass such a law that makes vaccination compulsory,” he said in an interview on dzBB.

The senator said the government could not just add conditions to the grant of subsidies for 4Ps beneficiaries.

Under the 4Ps Act or Republic Act No. 11310, Filipino households below the poverty line with underage members must comply with certain conditions to receive subsidies, such as pregnant women receiving prenatal and postnatal care, children getting adequate nutrition and attending classes in school at least 85 percent of the time.

“The law states what are the conditions for the subsidies. The DILG can’t just add to the conditions. That’s illegal and that’s against the law,” Drilon said.

On Saturday, DILG spokesperson Jonathan Malaya said the government was looking at excluding 4Ps beneficiaries from receiving subsidies under the antipoverty program if they would not get vaccinated against COVID-19.

“The 4Ps is called a conditional transfer because before you can get your regular subsidy from the government, you have to meet certain conditions,” Malaya said. “We will just add another condition, which is vaccination. If they will not get vaccinated, they will not receive any 4Ps subsidy from the government.”

Motivation

“There should be no compulsion. What we want is the vaccination of the willing,” Sen. Aquilino Pimentel III added in an interview on dzBB.

“We need to give our people the motivation to be vaccinated willingly. So they will agree to it with a smile,” Pimentel said.

Sen. Francis Pangilinan also doubted the DILG’s argument.

“Are the people really unwilling to be vaccinated? It seems that the issue of low vaccination rate is more due to the lack of availability of vaccines and distrust toward certain brands of vaccines,” he told the Inquirer in a Viber message.

“Getting vaccinated is a personal decision. What the government needs to focus on is how to convince people to get vaccinated,” Pangilinan said.

“In short, incentivize, not penalize. Aid should not be denied to those who need it. Depriving people of money for food is not the solution,” he said.

In a statement, Sen Risa Hontiveros said the DILG proposal would not be beneficial to the poor.

The senator said the departments of social welfare and development and of health “should work together with parent leaders to continue their efforts to promote health/wellness by encouraging 4Ps to get vaccinated, instead of making it a conditionality.”

Malaya did not respond to requests for comment on Sunday.

Burden

If the government would require the vaccination for 4Ps beneficiaries, Jhonalyn Esperida, 29, said she would rather withdraw from the program than risk her life.

Esperida receives P3,300 every two months from 4Ps, which helps in sustaining the needs of her four children along with the meager income of her husband who works as a construction worker.

“We are able to make ends meet and the 4Ps program really contributes a lot,” she said.

But with the DILG plan, Esperida, who was diagnosed with allergies, would be left with no choice but to leave the cash aid program.

Chelle Dangin, a resident of Iligan City, said she was disappointed after hearing the news on the DILG’s proposal.

She said the cash assistance contributed a lot especially for her who had no permanent job and relied on crops they could harvest from the farm.

Dangin has six kids who are studying and she has been a beneficiary of the program for a long time, “and with the help of the aid, I was able to support my children, one of whom is already a senior high school student.”

She said she had no problem with the proposal of mandatory vaccination as she was now awaiting her inoculation schedule. “But there are people who do not approve of it because they have existing illnesses,” she said.

The primary concern of everyone, Dangin said, was what was going to happen if the vaccines would have adverse effects on their body, especially on those who were sick.

“[The proposed policy] would really become a burden to the members of 4Ps who have illnesses,” Dangin added.

House lawmakers on Sunday also opposed the DILG proposal.

‘Harsh conditions’

Marikina Rep. Stella Quimbo said there was no condition under the 4Ps law that a recipient must be vaccinated to receive the subsidy.

“We cannot change the rules of a program that has been found to be effective and aligned with global best practices,” Quimbo told the Inquirer in a Viber message.

She said the government could not impose “harsh conditions” when vaccine supply in the country was not yet stable.

Muntinlupa Rep. Ruffy Biazon also said that mandatory vaccination could not be imposed as a condition in granting the 4Ps benefits.

“RA 11310 prescribes eligibility and conditions to receive benefits. Requiring vaccination goes beyond what the law prescribes,” Biazon said on Twitter.

He explained that the only reference to vaccines as a condition in the 4Ps law was the vaccination of children 0-5 years old.

He pointed out that as of now, children age 0-5 were not included in the coverage of the government’s COVID-19 vaccination program.

House Deputy Minority Leader and Bayan Muna Rep. Carlos Zarate added that the poor needed a massive information drive to address vaccine hesitancy.

Anakalusugan Rep. Michael Defensor also branded the proposal as “downright oppressive and antipoor, and simply unacceptable.”

Indigent families and their dependent children would suffer more if they get deprived of their cash subsidies, Defensor, vice chair of the House committee on welfare of children, said in a statement.

Instead of penalizing poor families, he said the government should find better ways to further improve public access to vaccination services.

‘Arm-twisting scheme’

Gabriela Rep. Arlene Brosas said that “vaccine hesitancy among some Filipinos cannot be solved by another ill-conceived arm-twisting scheme by the DILG in a desperate bid to boost the number of vaccinated Filipinos.”

Iloilo Rep. Janette Garin, former health secretary, said in a Viber message to the Inquirer that the proposal was “not a good idea,” and “not an effective way to address vaccine hesitancy.”

“4Ps is a human development program. It was created to help the people. Do we prevent people from getting the help they need just because they are afraid to get a vaccine?” Garin asked.

She said it would be better if the government educated the public on the benefits of vaccination such as requiring them to attend a vaccine forum prior to giving them the cash aid.

“In areas in my district where hesitancy was very high, I personally conducted vax education and jab a family member in front of them. The turnout is very high. We need to address their fears, counter misinformation and lambast the perpetrators of infodemic,” she said.

House tax chief and Albay Rep. Joey Salceda said vaccine hesitancy was a matter of trust.

Salceda pointed out that people appeared to discriminate among brands, “and there’s nothing much that we can do to dissuade them about these preferences.”