ADVERTISEMENT
Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider Duterte tells Galvez: Implement 'pro rata' vaccine distribution in provinces

Duterte tells Galvez: Implement 'pro rata' vaccine distribution in provinces

Published Jun 1, 2021 02:27 am

The government is gearing up for the distribution of more coronavirus vaccines to places outside Metro Manila.

President Rodrigo Duterte holds a vial of coronavirus vaccine developed by Sinovac during the turnover of the Chinese-made vaccines in Villamor Air Base, Pasay City on February 28, 2021. (Malacañang)

As more coronavirus shots are expected to arrive in the country, President Duterte has directed vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr. to facilitate a "pro rata" distribution of the vaccines among local government units to hasten the inoculation drive.

In a televised address Monday, May 31, the President said Galvez could start the vaccine distribution in Iloilo, Zamboanga, Cagayan, Butuan, Surigao, Leyte, Samar, and other places in the country.

Ensuring a proportional allocation of vaccines in the provinces was proposed by the President after noticing many people in Metro Manila have already been inoculated against the virus.

"I am directing Secretary Galvez to make a distribution parang pro rata (like pro rata)," Duterte said in his remarks.

"Paghati-hatian natin ito tutal most of the... The bulk of the people of the NCR mayroon na ho silang bakuna. Kung magdating ‘yong sunod na marami, eh you divide it amongst the local government units. Sana magawa ito sa madaling panahon (Let's divide the supply among ourselves since the bulk of the people of NCR have received their vaccines. When more vaccines arrive, you divide it amongst the local government units. I hope we can do this as soon as possible)," he said.

The President said the country has no oversupply of vaccines but the doses are "coming in bulk now."

He appealed anew to the public to get vaccinated as soon as possible to enhance their protection against the virus. Public health standards must also be observed as the country continued to battle the pandemic, he said.

"We urge all of you to get vaccinated with the vaccines available to us right now, because we want you, your families and your communities to be safe from the virus," he said.

At present, the country has received more than 8.3 million doses of coronavirus vaccines from various suppliers abroad. More vaccines are expected to arrive in June.

Around 5.1 million doses of the COVID-19 shots have been administered so far, prioritizing health workers, seniors, and those with comorbidity. Over a million persons have already been fully vaccinated.

The vaccination of the country's essential workers is expected to begin in June.

READ: PH accelerates vaccination program as administered jabs breach 5-M mark

The government is pinning its hopes on the vaccination drive to slow down the COVID transmission, fully reopen the economy, and hasten the country's recovery after the debilitating impact of the pandemic since 2020.

The government recently announced its goal to inoculate 9.7 million people in National Capital Region to reach "population protection" by November 2021.

It earlier targeted the vaccination of 58 to 70 million Filipinos before the end of the year to achieve herd immunity. Such goal has been revised given the country's limited vaccine supply and the threats of new coronavirus variants.

Related Tags

President Duterte Metro Manila Coronavirus vaccines distribution provinces pro-rata
ADVERTISEMENT
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1561_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1562_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1563_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}

{{ articles_filter_1564_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.mb-article-details { position: relative; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview, .mb-article-details .article-body-summary{ font-size: 17px; line-height: 30px; font-family: "Libre Caslon Text", serif; color: #000; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview iframe , .mb-article-details .article-body-summary iframe{ width: 100%; margin: auto; } .read-more-background { background: linear-gradient(180deg, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0) 13.75%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0.8) 30.79%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000) 72.5%); position: absolute; height: 200px; width: 100%; bottom: 0; display: flex; justify-content: center; align-items: center; padding: 0; } .read-more-background a{ color: #000; } .read-more-btn { padding: 17px 45px; font-family: Inter; font-weight: 700; font-size: 18px; line-height: 16px; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle; border: 1px solid black; background-color: white; } .hidden { display: none; }
function initializeAllSwipers() { // Get all hidden inputs with cms_article_id document.querySelectorAll('[id^="cms_article_id_"]').forEach(function (input) { const cmsArticleId = input.value; const articleSelector = '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .body_images'; const swiperElement = document.querySelector(articleSelector); if (swiperElement && !swiperElement.classList.contains('swiper-initialized')) { new Swiper(articleSelector, { loop: true, pagination: false, navigation: { nextEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-next', prevEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-prev', }, }); } }); } setTimeout(initializeAllSwipers, 3000); const intersectionObserver = new IntersectionObserver( (entries) => { entries.forEach((entry) => { if (entry.isIntersecting) { const newUrl = entry.target.getAttribute("data-url"); if (newUrl) { history.pushState(null, null, newUrl); let article = entry.target; // Extract metadata const author = article.querySelector('.author-section').textContent.replace('By', '').trim(); const section = article.querySelector('.section-info ').textContent.replace(' ', ' '); const title = article.querySelector('.article-title h1').textContent; // Parse URL for Chartbeat path format const parsedUrl = new URL(newUrl, window.location.origin); const cleanUrl = parsedUrl.host + parsedUrl.pathname; // Update Chartbeat configuration if (typeof window._sf_async_config !== 'undefined') { window._sf_async_config.path = cleanUrl; window._sf_async_config.sections = section; window._sf_async_config.authors = author; } // Track virtual page view with Chartbeat if (typeof pSUPERFLY !== 'undefined' && typeof pSUPERFLY.virtualPage === 'function') { try { pSUPERFLY.virtualPage({ path: cleanUrl, title: title, sections: section, authors: author }); } catch (error) { console.error('ping error', error); } } // Optional: Update document title if (title && title !== document.title) { document.title = title; } } } }); }, { threshold: 0.1 } ); function showArticleBody(button) { const article = button.closest("article"); const summary = article.querySelector(".article-body-summary"); const body = article.querySelector(".article-body-preview"); const readMoreSection = article.querySelector(".read-more-background"); // Hide summary and read-more section summary.style.display = "none"; readMoreSection.style.display = "none"; // Show the full article body body.classList.remove("hidden"); } document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", () => { let loadCount = 0; // Track how many times articles are loaded const offset = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]; // Offset values const currentUrl = window.location.pathname.substring(1); let isLoading = false; // Prevent multiple calls if (!currentUrl) { console.log("Current URL is invalid."); return; } const sentinel = document.getElementById("load-more-sentinel"); if (!sentinel) { console.log("Sentinel element not found."); return; } function isSentinelVisible() { const rect = sentinel.getBoundingClientRect(); return ( rect.top < window.innerHeight && rect.bottom >= 0 ); } function onScroll() { if (isLoading) return; if (isSentinelVisible()) { if (loadCount >= offset.length) { console.log("Maximum load attempts reached."); window.removeEventListener("scroll", onScroll); return; } isLoading = true; const currentOffset = offset[loadCount]; window.loadMoreItems().then(() => { let article = document.querySelector('#widget_1690 > div:nth-last-of-type(2) article'); intersectionObserver.observe(article) loadCount++; }).catch(error => { console.error("Error loading more items:", error); }).finally(() => { isLoading = false; }); } } window.addEventListener("scroll", onScroll); });
Join Our Newsletters

Sign up by email to receive news.

© 2025 Manila Bulletin The Nation's Leading Newspaper. All Rights Reserved.