FOREIGN Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. bared on Saturday that US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will give it his “best try” to help the Philippines get even “a fraction” of the Pfizer vaccine deal after the Philippines’ top diplomat reported that “someone dropped the ball” during the negotiations.
Locsin’s disclosure comes as Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr., the country’s vaccine czar and the National Task Force Against Covid-19 chief implementor, reiterated on Friday night that “no bus was missed” or “no ball was dropped” as the government was focused on its goal of securing an “equitable share of vaccines.
Sen. Panfilo Lacson thinks otherwise as he called on the vaccine czar “not to defend the indefensible.”
Sen. Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go called for a whole-of-nation approach to end the pandemic while AKO-Bicol party-list Rep. Alfredo Garbin Jr. urged the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases to fully disclose to the public the details of the government’s transactions on the vaccine to ensure transparency.
In his Twitter post, Locsin said he had a phone conversation with Pompeo on Friday night and touched on the issue of the Pfizer vaccine deal for the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19).
“Great phone conversation with Mike Pompeo last night. Lotsa laughs at others. But on the most serious note, I asked him to help Babe (Philippine Ambassador to the United States Jose Manuel Romualdez) and I get back even a fraction of the 10 million doses of Pfizer after someone dropped the ball,” Locsin said.
He emphasized that the US Secretary of State will “give it his best try.”
Locsin added that the Philippine ambassador to the US was also working on the vaccine deal with Moderna.
Locsin disclosed previously on Twitter that he and Romualdez secured “10 million doses of vaccine from Pfizer” to be financed by “the World Bank and Asian Development Bank and “shipped through FedEx to Clark [Air Base] in January. But somebody dropped the ball.”
‘Help Duque do his job’
Although Locsin did not mention names, Lacson, who met with the two officials, pointed to Health Secretary Francisco Duque 3rd, who later denied that the process for the Covid-19 vaccine from Pfizer was hampered due to his failure to act on the required Confidentiality Disclosure Agreement (CDA).
In a statement on Saturday, Lacson urged the Cabinet to help Duque do his job instead of defending him.
“This time, I expect Secretary Duque to be alert, and I expect the Cabinet members to help him move faster instead of defending him through statements to the media,” Lacson said.
He noted that Duque had asked Galvez and other Cabinet members to defend him in the media, noting that the health secretary was “practically frantic” in doing so.
“Please don’t defend the indefensible,” Lacson advised Galvez, noting no less than President Rodrigo Duterte had told Duque to explain himself.
“This is also not an issue of a ‘mission impossible’ of getting the vaccines by January. The issue is Duque’s negligence that more efficient bureaucracies like Singapore are getting the vaccines ahead of us,” he added.
As for Duque’s claim that he erred on the side of caution in signing the CDA late, Lacson said, “Caution, my foot. 118 days to sign a simple CDA, between June and October?”
Go, who chairs the Senate health and demography committee, also earnestly asked fellow public servants to remain united and focused on dealing with the true enemy, which is the Covid-19 pandemic.
Go also asked Duque to exercise accountability by explaining his actions with regard to the accusations thrown at him.
President Duterte and Go have expressed willingness to be one of the first to get a dose of the vaccine to encourage the public and allay fears on its safety and efficacy.
Go told concerned officials to act swiftly while exercising due diligence to ensure the availability of safe and effective vaccines for Filipinos, especially the poor and vulnerable sectors who must be prioritized.
No ‘balls dropped’ — Galvez
Galvez said the country remained on track in the procurement of the vaccines and assured that the process would be transparent and accountable.
In a statement to reporters on Friday night, Galvez said, however, that negotiations in the procurement of the vaccine would reach a gridlock when possible legal challenges, public interest, and the safety of the public are at stake.
“Let me reiterate, no ‘bus’ was missed or no ‘ball’ was dropped because we are focused on our main goal, and that is, to secure an equitable share of the vaccines,“ Galvez said.
He said the process of the selection of the vaccines would be based on “the safety, efficacy, cost-effectiveness, track record of the vaccine maker, after sales, production capacity and early delivery and long-term commitment.”
Galvez said the Philippines would be utilizing its multilateral agreements with the Asian Development Bank, World Bank and other global lenders through the Department of Finance (DoF).
He said the multilateral lenders would not allow “kickback” on the vaccination funds.
“Alam po natin na ‘yung integrity ni Secretary of Finance [Carlos Dominguez 3rd] andiyan, even ‘yung mga kontrata na hindi maganda, naayos niya (I know the integrity of the Secretary of Finance, even those contracts that are not that good, he fixes it),” Galvez said during the Laging Handa briefing on Saturday.
Galvez’s pronouncements were echoed by Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire, who assured the public of the transparency of the vaccine procurement process.
The DoF has allocated from P 73 to 75 billion for the inoculation of 60 to 80 million Filipinos to achieve the World Health Organization’s standard for herd immunity of at least 60 to 80 percent of the population.
He added that the payments for the vaccines would only be done once all regulatory requirements for the emergency use authorization or EUA from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the originating country are secured.
As for the prices of vaccines that were shown to the media, Galvez said these were not the negotiated prices given by the companies but commercial prices.
Galvez confirmed that Romualdez has talked to Moderna about a possible allocation for the Philippines, with a meeting with the US drugmaker set early next week. Pfizer will sign a deal with the Philippine government within the month or by the first week of January once a definite allocation is determined.
Full disclosure
Garbin cited “the historic, crucial importance of the decisions on the choice of Covid-19 vaccines and other details of the vaccination plan” so “it is but just that we in Congress remind the IATF Vaccination Task Force of the necessity of full and timely transparency.”
Garbin, vice chairman of the House of Representatives’ Committee on Justice and a lawyer, stressed the need to inform the public “every step of the way with full disclosure.”
He said among the details that need to be disclosed are the characteristics of each Covid-19 vaccine such as its formulation, ingredients, vaccine development techniques, efficacy in clinical trials, side effects, benefits, limitations as to patient screening, storage, temperature control, and costs. He said explanation of all the scientific, economic, legal and logistical facts must also be shared.
Garbin added that all documents must be made public immediately including “draft contracts, signed contracts, terms of reference, minutes of meetings, and every single document directly or indirectly related to any Covid-19 vaccine transaction produced by or emanating from any government office.”
The lawmaker said the FDA must also request for all the supporting documentation about all phases of clinical trials and the analysis of the health authorities in countries like the United States and the United Kingdom that they used to decide the approval of the vaccines.
Garbin also asked the Anti-Money Laundering Council and all the banks to be on the alert against any suspicious and unusual money transfers related to the Covid-19 vaccines.
with RED MENDOZA and DIVINA NOVA JOY DELA CRUZ