At least 32 administration and opposition congressmen are pushing for a congressional inquiry into the Bureau of Quarantine’s (BoQ) allegedly “exorbitant” contract for the payment of P70 convenience fee for the issuance of International Certificates of Vaccination (ICVs) for COVID 19 to outbound Filipino travelers and migrant workers.
The lawmakers filed House Resolution No. 2198 directing the House Committee on Overseas Workers Affairs to lead the inquiry in aid of legislation.
Among the authors of HR 2198 are Reps. Jesus “Bong” Suntay (4th District, Quezon City), Sharon Garin (AAMBIS-OWA Partylist); Juan Miguel Arroyo (2nd District, Pampanga); Michael Gorriceta (2nd District, Iloilo) and Francisco Benitez (3rd District, Negros Occidental).
The lawmakers questioned the BoQ contract for the issuance of ICV that would cost applicants a convenience fee of P70.
Solons said the BoQ contract with PisoPay as well as the fees charged for the issuance of the vaccine certificate should be justified.
The Bureau of Qurantine has been tasked with the issuance of the International Vaccine Certification or yellow card as proof of vaccination against Covid 19, which some countries would accept as proof of vaccination.
In filing HR2918, the lawmakers noted that in order to obtain the ICV, “our citizens need to book an appointment through the Bureau of Quarantine website, and pay P300 for the issuance of the said certificate plus and convenience fee of P70, thereby adding to the financial burden of OFWs wishing to returm to their work abroad.”
"It appears that the Bureau of Quarantine partnered with a FinTech company called PisoPay to receive the payment for the issuance of the ICV, a company incorporated in 2017 with BSP (Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas) license to act as a remittance agent issued in 2019, and not wholly owned by Filipinos," they said.
Authors of the resolution noted that under Section12 of Republic Act 11525, also known as the Covid-19 Vaccination Program of 2021, the DOH is tasked to issue vaccination card to all persons vaccinated against Covid-19. To expedite the vaccination process, the DOH was authorized to delegate the issuance and processing of all vaccination cards to local government units and private entities.
"Under the penultimate paragraph of Section 12 of the same law, the issuance, amendment, or replacement of the vaccine card shall be free of charge," the lawmakers lamented.
They also noted that the delegation of the authority to issue and process vaccination cards to the local governments has resulted in the lack of uniformity in the appearance and contents of the vaccination cards.
"This lack of uniformity in the vaccination cards was reported as the reason for other countries refusal to recognize vaccine cards from the Philippines as proof of vaccination, thereby adding another obstacle to the return to work of our Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs)," the resolution stated.
The 32 lawmakers, who authored the House Resolution 2198, also cited "a need for more transparency and more government information as to the Bureau of Quarantine's charging for the issuance of the ICV in view of existing laws on the matter." Under the World Health Organization’s guidelines, for inbound travelers, they can use their ICVs issued by the BOQ as proof of inoculation to reduce the length of their mandatory quarantine stays in hotels prior to their travel to their final destinations.
Overseas Filipino workers fully vaccinated against COVID-19 need to get these ICVs if they want to travel and work abroad because the vaccination cards issued by the local government units (LGUs) of the localities where they have had their jabs are not recognized by other countries.