Kiko warns bureaucracy, not money, to cause problems in COVID vaccine rollout

Sen. Francis Pangilinan. Screen grab/ Senate PRIB file photo

MANILA, Philippines — It’s the bureaucracy, not the money, that will cause problems in the government’s COVID-19 vaccine rollout, Senator Francis Pangilinan said.

“Hindi pera ang problema, burukrasya ang problema,” Pangilinan said in an interview over ABS-CBN News Channel.

(The problem is the bureaucracy, not the money.)

Under the proposed 2021 budget, P2.5 billion is lodged under the Department of Health (DOH) for the purchase of COVID-19 vaccines. Some P70 billion is meanwhile placed under unprogrammed appropriations, funding for which will be released depending on the non-tax revenue collection of the government.

Another P10 billion is set aside under the Bayanihan to Recover as One Act or Bayanihan 2.

Pangilinan noted the slow disbursement of funds by the executive department, adding that Congress had to extend the availability of funds under the 2020 budget and the Bayanihan 2 since billions remain unspent.

“Bilyun-bilyong halaga ng pera ang hindi nagagamit, mabagal (ang release), may burukrasya sa executive department na kung hindi natin in-extend e babalik (ang unspent funds) sa national treasury na kinakailangan dapat gastusin dahil iyun ang hinahanap ng ating mga kababyan,” Pangilinan said.

(Billions of pesos remain unspent due to bureaucracy in the executive department. If we did not extend the validity of these two laws, the unspent funds would have been reverted to the national treasury when these funds need to be released to help fellow Filipinos.)

“So tayo sa Senado, inaprubahan natin yung pera, nandiyan yung pondo, itinutulak natin ngayon ang executive. Yan ang kainaman ng three branches of government: executive, judiciary, legislative. Minsan mabagal yung executive, kinakailangan pabilisin,” he added.

(In the Senate, we approved the money, there’s funding, we are pushing the executive. That’s what’s good about having three branches of government. There are times when the executive moves slowly that we need to give them a push.)

The Senate is set to hold a Committee of the Whole hearing on the government’s COVID-19 vaccination program.

Among questions to be raised by senators are the timeline of the vaccine rollout, the list of those to be prioritized for the inoculation programs as well as which vaccines the government plans to procure.

“We’re pushing for better performance and clearer deliverables dito sa COVID-19 vaccine rollout,” Pangilinan said.

JPV