BACOLOD City – “A giant leap towards our vaccination goals.” This was the statement of Mayor Evelio Leonardia after the city government secured 650,000 doses of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine developed by British pharmaceutical firm AstraZeneca.
Signing the deal with the Oxford-British vaccine maker, according to Leonardia, would mean “a very substantial number of our population can be vaccinated as soon as this product hits the Philippine shores.”
Since he had to honor the confidentiality clause in the contract, the mayor asked permission from AstraZeneca so he can disclose the details of the agreement.
Last week, Leonardia got the go-signal from the City Council to sign a non-disclosure agreement and the multilateral agreement with AstraZeneca and the national government.
He then sent another letter-request to the legislative body, asking to give him continuing authorization to enter into contracts with other pharmaceutical companies legally operating in the Philippines that could provide COVID-19 vaccines duly approved by the Food and Drug Administration.
Leonardia said the city government is spending P300 million for the procurement of COVID-19 vaccines.
Last month, Leonardia, national president of the League of Cities of the Philippines, formed the Committee on Vaccine Availment chaired by Iloilo City Mayor Jerry Treñas for the city mayors to strategize efforts to ensure that their constituents have early access to quality and affordable vaccines. (With PNA/PN)
