How many lives could have been saved if Health Secretary Francisco Duque III did not drop the ball in the government’s efforts to procure COVID vaccines from Pfizer?
Sen. Panfilo Lacson asked this Wednesday night as he scored Duque for failing to work on documentary requirements, including a Confidentiality Disclosure Agreement.
“But for the indifference of Sec. Duque, who failed to work on the necessary documentary requirement, namely the Confidentiality Disclosure Agreement as he should have done,” Lacson said, citing details of his phone conversation with Philippine ambassador to Washington Jose Romualdez.
“The more important question is, how many lives would be saved between January and when (if at all) the vaccines may be made available again to Filipinos?” he added.
In a post on his Twitter account Thursday morning, Lacson quoted an official involved in the efforts as saying Duque indeed dropped the ball.
“A direct quote: ‘In July, we passed the ball to him. Instead of aiming at the hoop, he scratched his balls so he dropped the ball even as time was running out. Then, Singapore grabbed and shot the ball,'” Lacson said.
“Now, they have the vaccines and we don’t,” he added.
A direct quote: “In July, we passed the ball to him. Instead of aiming at the hoop, he scratched his balls so he dropped the ball even as time was running out. Then, Singapore grabbed and shot the ball.”
Now, they have the vaccines and we don’t.— PING LACSON (@iampinglacson) December 17, 2020
Lacson noted that while negotiations with Pfizer are ongoing, these negotiations are a “renewed initiative after they missed the bus the first time.”
Quoting Ambassador Romualdez, he said Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. had negotiated with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, through a meeting arranged by Romualdez, for the Pfizer vaccines.
Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III also assured Romualdez and Locsin that money would be made available for the vaccines, he added.
But due to Duque’s indifference, the deal did not push through, even if Pfizer’s country representative was following up on the submission of the documentary requirements.
“As we now know, Singapore has the vaccines and we don’t,” Lacson said.
The post Maraming nasalba sana! Lacson laments Duque's dropping the ball cost PH a chance to procure COVID vaccines early first appeared on https://politics.com.ph.
Source: Latest Politics News Today (Politics.com.ph)
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