THE Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) welcomed Malacañang’s decision to move local chief executives (LCEs) up the COVID-19 vaccination priority list as “they are frontliners in our COVID response as well as the delivery of public service amid the pandemic and they must be in the best of health to be able serve their constituents.”

DILG Secretary Eduardo M. Año said that LCEs being upgraded to the vaccination priority list at A1.5 category is a good move by the national government. He said that LCEs, as elected officials, are expected to always be at the forefront of the COVID-19 crisis hence increasing their chances of exposure and infection.

“Our governors and mayors are the heads of the local COVID-19 task forces, so it’s just right that they are prioritized since they perform a vital role in defeating the pandemic on the local level. In fact, all major programs of government are implemented locally by the mayors, therefore they are critical to the success of everything that we do,” Año said.

“Sa anuman pong krisis, laging hinahanap ng mga mamamayan ang ating mga LCEs, lalo na ngayong pandemya. Kaya naman buo ang suporta ng DILG sa pagpapasya ng pamahalaan na iangat sa A1.5 vaccination category ang mga pinuno ng pamahalaang lokal,” he added.

Through Resolution No. 115-B of the Inter-agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases, 1,634 provincial governors and city and municipal mayors will move up the vaccination priority list under the A1.5 category regardless of the risk classification of their respective local government units (LGUs).

Año said that as the leaders of provincial, city, and municipal governments, LCEs are bound by the law to be on top of all the COVID-19 efforts within their jurisdictions and enforce all COVID-related policies and measures including prevention, detection, isolation, treatment, and rehabilitation.

In a recent press briefing, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said “Sila [LCEs] po ang nagpapatupad ng localized lockdown, vaccination. Sila [LCEs] po talaga ang ating instrumento dito sa paglaban natin sa COVID-19.”

“They [LCEs] may not be doctors, but they are equally frontliners dahil lahat po ng istratehiya natin ang mga humaharap po ang mga lokal na opisyales, si mayors at si governor,” he added.

Año further said that since the pandemic is still raging, requiring the immediate delivery of services to people in need, LCEs cannot be expected to just stay in their offices but to do field work and extend the help to people entailing interactions and exposure.

“Hindi naman po puwedeng puro Zoom na lang ang paglilingkod. Kailangan pong bumaba ng mga LCE and we at the DILG firmly believe that inoculating them is for the common good,” he said.

Since the onset of the pandemic, Año likewise said, the DILG has been putting pressure to LCEs, nudging them and ensuring that they are performing. He said that guaranteeing that they are safe from the virus, through COVID-19 inoculation, is one way of protecting the people.

“Bumabaha po ng mga memorandum mula DILG para sa ating LCEs mula nang mag-umpisa ang pandemyang ito para po tiyaking sila ay kikilos. Ang pagbabakuna naman po sa kanila ay hindi isang pabor ngunit isa ring pagtitiyak na may pinuno na patuloy na makakapaglingkod sa mga tao,” he said.

AUTHOR PROFILE

Jun I. Legaspi