Why can’t Duterte fix this simple problem within his own turf? That critical projects to build large vaccination facilities got this far and became an unncessary PR problem explains why we are in this mess. Sheer incompetence! Do you think government officials actually use their heads? Nope. The default mindset of the bureaucrats is they won’t move until their bosses come down hard on them. In his PhilSTAR piece today, “Mega vac center”, Boo Chanco vents his frustration over a “minor bureaucrat” who had kicked up a media circus that slowed a plan to build a “mega vax” center at an idle plot at the government-owned Nayong Pilipino site. International Container Terminal Services Inc (ICTSI) chairman Enrique K. Razon had offered to fund the building of the facility and preliminary work had been underway until this outrage fad erupted.
[This minor bureaucrat] made a big fuss about 500 trees being cut from a supposed forest in the Nayong Pilipino site. That’s not true.As [vaccine czar Carlito] Galvez observed, those are just ipil ipil trees. Vegetation there is obviously a result of neglect of the property.
Business Mirror published a photo from Google Earth showing the exact location of the proposed mega vaccination center on a vacant lot with rambling overgrowth of weeds and grass, not a forest, in the background.
But the same small-mindedness can be observed in the likes of many members of the opposition who also don’t bother to think outside of the box. Vaccination is proceeding at a slow pace because there is a lack of coordination between the IATF-EID and the LGUs. Given the limited supply of vaccines, it’s imperative that they be allocated and consumed on a per venue basis. This means refrigerated transport having to be arranged along with a storage facility at least two days before the schedule. Most chillers have an operating temperature of 10 degrees celsius. The Pfizer vaccines require a lower storage temperature of -70 degrees celsius. You can’t mix other vaccines with Pfizer because they might freeze. The mega vaccination facility will have integrated equipment needed for the vaccines to be used. This eliminates the need for schedules to be made due to limited venue capacity. It has to be an in and out proposition in order to avoid crowds waiting for their turn. Instead of providing for ample parking areas, it would be better to have a drive-thru option to keep the vehicles going one after the other. Instead of only one, there should be four to serve north, south, west and east NCR. The best idea is to widen the coverage to NCR+.
Indeed, in the same piece Chanco writes of an account of the queue for COVID-19 vaccination experienced by Apa Ogpin who recalls it as “a five-hour ordeal, half of it in the sun, then through the lobby, and then leading into the building (with no air circulation, thus increasing our chances of getting infected by a factor of hundreds), then out again, in an absurd accordion where we retraced our steps.”
The problem with Chanco and the Opposition is there are days when they accuse Duterte of being a dictator and there are days when they want him to be a dictator. They simply can’t make up their minds. EKR wants the economy to reopen because Solaire is bleeding losses. He can recoup the P250M when his casino reopens. The problem is also with media as well as they tend to pounce on a story and generate controversy in order to increase their clicks. There is no such thing now as responsible reporting. Watch the Razon interview with ABS-CBN’s Karen Davila and you will see how she asks stupid questions.
Stupid KaladKaren. When you're an anchor you are expected to do your homework. It shouldn't happen you ask the interviewee asinine questions. https://t.co/iRPIflrmEH
— The Renaissance Man in Manila (@marortoll) May 13, 2021
I recall when she was starting out at Brigada Siete, Karen couldn’t afford to be stupid like this because Louie Beltran wouldn’t tolerate it.
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