BulletLine Issue #32
Fear COVID-19, not the vaccines - Sen. Go Senator Christopher “Bong” Go continues to remind Filipinos not to fear COVID-19 vaccines but fear the virus itself, stressing that vaccination is an essential first step towards restoring normalcy in the country. “‘Wag kayong matakot sa bakuna, matakot kayo sa
COVID-19. Ang COVID-19 po ang nakamamatay. Ang bakuna lang ang tanging solusyon. Magtiwala lang po tayo sa ating gobyerno at ginagawa naman ng gobyerno ang lahat,” Sen. Go emphasized.
Gov’t investigating firms offering “fake” smuggled vaccines seemed to have gained entry to the country through Government is investigating three spurious means. These companies companies for have also been allegedly selling offering vaccines to “fake” smuggled local government vaccines said National Task Force units. “[That is] why we Against COVID-19 Chief Implementer made a nationwide alert with the LGUs and Vaccine czar that if they will Secretary Carlito conduct negotiations Galvez Jr. in a with the different virtual press vaccine companies— briefing Tuesday, it should be properly March 30. These companies coordinated with us,” Galvez said. he said are not He warns that authorized by the this kind of practice mother vaccine “will really pose a companies and
By Melva Gayta - PIA/ IDPD
serious threat to the safety and efficacy of our vaccination program.” He also asked vaccine companies to police their ranks to assure that dealings are within the purview of the recently approved legislation regarding vaccination.
‘NCR Plus’ stays under ECQ for another week
Bahagi ng paninira sa administrasyon ang ganitong fake news.
Photo from Daily Tribune
“The enforcement of Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) status in Metro Manila, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, and Rizal will be extended for at least a week,” Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque announced on Saturday, 3 April 2021. Meanwhile, local government units (LGUs) in NCR Plus are directed to intensify the prevent-detect-isolate-treat-reintegrate (PDITR) measures. 1 PIA Bulletin Online
PRRD Ok’s private sector to import ‘at will’ COVID-19 vax
“A video, which has been circulating online, has come to our attention. Lugaw, or any food item for that matter, is considered an essential good. Delivery of food items must remain unhampered 24/7. Huwag nating harangin sa checkpoints,” Presidential Harry Roque said.
1st batch of gov’t procured vax arrives
The Philippines on Monday, March 29 received the first tranche of 1 million CoronaVac
vaccine doses out of the total 25 million doses procured by the national
government from vaccine manufacturer SINOVAC. President
President Rodrigo Roa Duterte has allowed private sectors to procure vaccines for their workers in addition to those secured by the government. “Ang decision ko na is I have ordered Secretary Galvez to sign any and all documents that would allow the private sector to import at will. Maski magkano o ilan ang gusto nilang ipasok okay sa akin,” he said. The President said private companies are eager to vaccinate their workforces so that the economy could reopen and their business operations could return to normalcy. Rodrigo Roa Editorial Director Duterte, Senator Benjamin Felipe Christopher Editor-In-Chief Marie Angelie Villapando Lawrence Associate Editor “Bong” Go, Melinda T. Quiñones Health Secretary Staff Writers Francisco T. Duque IDPD III, National Task Art Department Force against CPSD headed by Bradley de Leon COVID-19 Chief Layout Artist Implementer and Gabriel Villanueva Vaccine Czar Production/ Aggregation Secretary Carlito DDCU with Team Leader G. Galvez Jr. (NTF Kate Shiene Agna Vaccine Czar), and Chinese Ambassador to the vaccine doses at Philippines Huang Villamor Airbase in Xilian received the Pasay City. PIA Bulletin Online 2
StaySafe.Ph to boost contract tracing
Photo from SatySafe.ph
By Josephine L. Babaran - PIA/IDPD
system of digital contact tracing. DILG Officer-InThe Department of the Interior and Charge Bernardo Local Government Florece Jr. said instead of using (DILG) urges all other apps, it is local government units (LGUs) and imperative for LGUs to use the the public to use StaySafe app for and patronize a unified system the StaySafe.Ph that will allow app for a unified
seamless, fast, and efficient contact tracing efforts. DILG Undersecretary Jonathan Malaya assured the public
that the app will not be used for surveillance because it does not use GPS rather it uses Bluetooth
technology through the GAENS or the Google Apple Exposure Notification System.
BAKUNADO, PROTEKTADO
Isanlibong Philippine Red Cross staff at volunteers ang nabakunahan na ng programang Resbakuna 2021, katuwang ang DOH. Ang AstraZeneca vaccines na itinurok sa frontliners ay proteksyon para ligtas sila sa COVID-19 response at humanitarian works sa buong bansa.
Covid-19 vaccine inequity ‘a global issue’-Sec. Andanar The challenges in the procurement and rollout of Covid-19 vaccines is a global issue and not “incompetence” as alleged by members of the opposition, Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) Secretary Martin Andanar said on Sunday. 3 PIA Bulletin Online
Andanar made this statement as senators continue to blame the Duterte administration’s supposed incompetence for delays in the procurement and rollout of Covid-19 vaccines. He praised BBC’s weekly podcast “How to Vaccinate the
World” for its “simple, straight to the point and concise” discussion in problems surrounding the global access of Covid-19 vaccines. “It (the podcast) does drive home that message of vaccine nationalism and vaccine hoarding,
which our media here generally has not picked up on, because they tend to be parochial in perspective. And so what
the opposition is calling incompetence is really a global issue -- not a Philippine problem alone,” he said.
Green technology for insulation, packing foam materials from waste By Josephine L. Babaran - PIA/IDPD
Photo: DOST-PCIEERD
Researchers from the Mindanao State University-Iligan Institute of Technology (MSU-IIT) was able to convert plant-based raw materials and its waste by-products into valuable and renewable polyols and polyurethanes (PU) that can be used for commercial production of coatings, insulation, and packing foam materials. Dr. Arnold A. Lubguban and his team at the MSU-IIT BioProducts Research Laboratories (BPRL) developed this green technology in collaboration with the Department of Science and Technology – Philippine Council for Industry, Energy and Emerging Technology Research and Development (DOSTPCIEERD).
500 additional free housing units for Yolanda survivors in Leyte
Photo: Cabinet Sec. Karlo Nograles Facebook page
Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles, together with officers of Task Force Yolanda and the National Housing Authority, led the distribution of free housing units to beneficiaries in Sta. Fe, Leyte on March 24, 2021. Since assuming the chairmanship of the Inter-agency Task Force for the Unified Implementation and Monitoring of Rehabilitation and Recovery Projects and Programs in Yolanda-affected Areas, Nograles has turned over 17,572 houses to different municipalities in Region 8.
Project staff performing optimization experiments on the production of rigid foams.
To know more about the “Production of Bio-Based Polyols and Polyurethanes for Industrial Applications” contact Dr. Arnold A. Lubguban at aalubg@gmail.com or visit https://web.facebook.com/BPRL.msuiit).
Project Tokhang Laban sa Korapsyon By Adora Rodriguez PIA/IDPD
Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission (PACC) Chairperson Greco Belgica said they will prioritize three government agencies for their recently launched Project Tokhang Laban sa Korapsyon, a program to strengthen President Rodrigo Roa Duterte’s anticorruption efforts. Belgica said based on the reports received by their office,
these agencies are the Department of Public Works and Highways, Bureau of Internal Revenue and Bureau of Customs (BOC) . He said they will also look into the Department of Health, the Bureau of Immigration, Department of Agriculture, Land
Registration Authority and the local government units through the Department of the Interior and Local Government. Earlier, officials and employees of the BOC have signed a manifesto in support to the anti-corruption efforts of government. PIA Bulletin Online 4
5 PIA Bulletin Online
DA renews push for urban gardening By Melva Gayta PIA/IDPD
The department of Agriculture (DA) encourages residents and building owners to transform their rooftops and verandas into vegetable gardens as part of its continuing efforts to promote urban agriculture amid the pandemic. Aside from ensuring steady supply of fresh, nutritious and affordable food, transforming rooftops into gardens can help cool houses and buildings, as well, said Agriculture
Photo: Department of Agriculture
Secretary William Dar. He also called on local government units (LGUs) in Metro Manila and urban areas to enact ordinances for development of ‘green’ and ecofriendly buildings and communities.
PIA Bulletin Online 6