Senator Francis Pangilinan on Saturday, August 22, urged the government's economic and finance managers to push for the procurement of the personal protective equipment (PPE) and other supplies for COVID-19 response from local manufacturers.

The opposition senator made the appeal after the Confederation of Philippine Manufacturers of PPE (CPMP) lamented that the Department of Health (DOH), through the Department of the Budget and Management's (DBM) Procurement Service, continued to import its PPE requirements despite the local suppliers complying with safety regulations and certifications.

"Mukhang ginagamit pa ng mga halang ang bituka ang DBM Procurement Service para nakawin rin ang bilyon-bilyong pera ng taumbayan na nakalaan para sa PPE (Unscrupulous individuals are even using the DBM to also steal the billions of people's money that should be used for buying PPEs)," Pangilinan said in a statement.

"Tulad ng nangyari sa high-quality and cheaper Filipino-made testing kits, sinabi ng CPMP na mas pinapaboran ang mga imported na PPE (It’s like what happened to high-quality and cheaper Filipino-made testing kits, the CPMP said that the DOH is favoring imported PPEs over local products)," he added.

"Hindi natin maiwasang itanong ulit: Sino ang kumikita sa imported at overpriced na PPEs (We can't help but ask: Who is benefitting from those imported and overpriced PPEs)?"

Pangilinan said the government should purchase Filipino-made PPEs to ensure the safety and protection of health workers from the novel coronavirus infection. He said this would also support the workers of the local manufacturers and generate thousands of jobs.

"We call on the Cabinet Economic Cluster to push for the purchase of local PPEs and other COVID-related medical supplies and equipment. Our country needs this government fund-independent stimulus to our economy," he said.

"Sa gitna ng pandemya, kailangan nating tutukan na huwag nang madagdagan ang libo-libong buhay at milyon-milyong hanapbuhay na nawala (Amid the pandemic, we have to make sure not to add to the thousands of lives and millions of jobs lost)," he appealed.

Under the bicam-approved "Bayanihan to Recover as One", or Bayanihan 2 bill, a P3-billion allocation was set aside for the procurement of face masks, face shields, PPEs for health workers, barangay officials and others who will need protection, provided that preference is given to products made in the Philippines.

Earlier, Pangilinan and Senators Franklin Drilon and Risa Hontiveros complained about the delay in the approval of use of the COVID-19 test kits developed by the University of the Philippines.

He later filed Senate Bill No. 1759, which proposed to mandate the prioritization and support of Filipino-made PPEs and medical supplies through tax exemptions.