Tricycle, pedicab, and delivery riders got more than their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine when they lined up at the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) complex on Tuesday, June 22, for the Office of the Vice President’s (OVP) and the Manila City government’s Vaccine Express: they also received a P500 gas incentive.
In a Twitter post, Vice President Leni Robredo shared that her office partnered with SEAOIL Foundation and Shell Philippines to provide a P500 fuel incentive for the drivers who will get their COVID-19 jabs through the two-day Vaccine Express program that aims to inoculate economic frontliners under the government’s A4 category.
Robredo said this was done to persuade the TODA drivers and Grab delivery riders to get themselves inoculated with the COVID-19 vaccine.
“As of 12 noon, nasa 900 drivers na ang nagpabakuna (around 900 drivers have already been vaccinated),” Robredo added in a tweet.
The OVP worked together with Manila Mayor Isko Moreno for the vaccination drive, the first drive-thru vaccination site in the country.
It will run for two days—on June 22 and 23—and will first target tricycle, pedicab, and delivery drivers.
READ: Robredo-Isko Vaccine Express for trike drivers starts on June 22
“Ito iyong mga tao na mas gusto sana mas kaunti iyong istorbo sa hanapbuhay nila, na hindi na sila pupunta kung saan, maghihintay ng half day o whole day para mabakunahan. Ito, in a matter of minutes tapos na sila (These are the people who don’t want to be disturbed from their livelihoods, that they don’t want to go anywhere, wait for half a day or whole day to get vaccinated. With this, in a matter of minutes, they’re done),” Robredo said.
The vice president shared that some Grab drivers who she and Moreno talked with earlier said that they are going to return to work after getting their shots.
For his part, Moreno expressed gratitude for the OVP’s support to local government units (LGUs).
“Ito talaga, idea nila ito na mag-create ng (This is their idea to create) additional effort to help local government units like the City of Manila. And we’re very grateful with all the logistics given to us by the Office of the Vice President... Ngayon, nakikita ninyo nagbenepisyo iyong mga economic drivers natin (Now, you can see that our economic drivers are benefitting)... and we’re very happy and excited na ito, matutuloy bukas at iyong kanina (this will continue tomorrow and the one earlier),” he said.
READ: COVID-19 response should have ’no political colors,’ says Robredo
This will not be the last time the two officials will work together to inoculate the economic frontliners. They plan to bring the same drive-thru vaccination site to vendors in Manila.
The Vaccine Express was made possible through the OVP’s flagship poverty alleviation program, Angat Buhay, and its private partners—the CCP, UBE Express, SMART Inc., and volunteer doctors and nurses.
Some of the medical volunteers are those who joined the OVP’s Bayanihan E-Konsulta, a free online medical teleconsultation service for COVID and non-COVID patients in the National Capital Region Plus (NCR Plus) bubble.
The medical doctors and nurses acted as the screeners and vaccinators while medical students from various schools also took part in the vaccination drive.