(File photo)
MANILA – With the increasing Covid-19 cases in the provinces, President Rodrigo Duterte told the New People's Army (NPA) rebels to allow the government to conduct the Covid-19 vaccination program in the far-flung communities that they have infiltrated.
"Pero kayo, mga NPA, ito ang utos ko sa inyo ha. Hindi ito—utos ito, ang order ko sa inyo na hayaan ninyo ‘yung gobyerno mag-implement ng itong order ko ngayon for them—for the itong mga tao diyan sa bukid-bukid na nasa baba ngayon kasi walang bahay, you allow them to go around at bakunahan ang mga tao (But you, NPA rebels, this is my order to you. This is an order, I order you to let the government implement my orders for the people in the remote areas, on-ground, because they don't have houses, you allow them to go around and vaccinate the people)," Duterte said in prerecorded Talk to the People aired on Tuesday.
Duterte said excess Covid-19 jabs can be used to vaccinate the members of the NPA, the armed wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) listed as a terrorist organization by the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the Philippines.
"Ngayon, pagka may sobra, kung may sobra lang, hindi kayo puwedeng unahin kay kalaban kayo sa gobyerno. Tingnan lang ninyo at kung may sobra, ‘di ano. Pero tawagan ninyo na muna ako na kung may sobra, ibigay ninyo sa NPA para hindi ma-Covid-19 (Now, if there's an excess, you can't be prioritized because you are enemy of State. I'll see if there's excess vaccines. But you should call me first if there's an excess, then you give it to the NPA rebels so they can't contract Covid-19)," Duterte said.
Duterte earlier urged the communist rebels to allow the government to operate in the NPA-infiltrated areas as the country continues to grapple with serious problems such as the Covid-19 pandemic and calamities.
"I am directing this [message] to the Communist Party of the Philippines. This time of our national life, we are having a serious problem. If you cannot cooperate, if you cannot help, then, maybe you can stand aside and allow the government to operate," Duterte said.
In his report to Duterte, Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said while Covid-19 cases in Metro Manila and nearby provinces are beginning to decrease, infections in many areas particularly in Mindanao have started to increase.
“The rest of Luzon nakikita po natin dito, nag-umpisa na rin pong mag-plateau. Hopefully, ito bumaba na rin in the coming days. Pero ang inoobserbahan po nating maigi, binabantayan natin ang Visayas and Mindanao. Itong color blue line ang Visayas, tapos ito namang Mindanao ‘yung orange ay pataas po ang mga kaso. (We can see the rest of Luzon, they start to plateau. Hopefully, it will go down in the coming days. But we are carefully observing Visayas and Mindanao. Color blue line is Visayas, and Mindanao is orange that has started to increase),” Duque said.
On Tuesday, the DOH reported 17,677 new Covid-19 cases, the lowest since January 6 when the country logged 17,220 infections.
The new cases brought the Philippines’ caseload to 3,459,646, including 3,158,597 recoveries, 247,451 active cases, and 53,598 deaths.
As of Monday, the country has already administered 123,866,249 doses since the vaccination rollout started in March last year.
More than 57.5 million Filipinos are now fully vaccinated, including 5.6 million who received single-shot Janssen jab, while 6.4 million have already received booster shots. (PNA)
