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MANILA, Philippines – The Senate Committee of the Whole will resume its public hearing on the government’s Covid-19 vaccination plan on Friday, January 22, as senators plan to raise more questions about the government’s agreements with vaccine manufacturers, in particular. Sinovac Biotech from China.
Friday’s hearing will be a continuation of the two hearings held by the Senate last week.
“With the approval of my colleagues, we will schedule another hearing for Friday at 10 am,” Senate President Vicente Sotto III said during the House session on Monday.
This developed after Senator Panfilo Lacson, in a privileged speech, suggested an executive session in which the vaccine czar, Carlito Gálvez Jr., should reveal the price that Sinovac and other pharmaceutical companies are offering to the Philippines for their vaccine. Gálvez has repeatedly refused to disclose the cost of the vaccines allegedly due to a confidentiality agreement.
READ: Lacson smells ‘attempt to overvalue’ PH purchase of Sinovac jabs for P16.8B
Lacson said an executive session would also allow senators to get answers to questions that went unanswered during the two hearings held last week.
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Citing a conversation in a Viber group chat with him, Gálvez, and Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, Lacson said the vaccine czar agreed to reveal to senators the price of the vaccines the government is considering purchasing “under certain conditions. terms”.
These conditions include that the senators are signatories to the confidentiality agreement.
“I will let the president of the Senate and our colleagues decide if the confidentiality disclosure agreement really needs to be signed,” Lacson said.
However, he noted that Sotto had informed him that the Senate has its own rules in which disclosure of information discussed during an executive session would merit expulsion.
“I am willing to sign because we are covered by Senate rules after all, so what is a signature to compromise or not to disclose what will be discussed in an executive session just for the spirit of transparency?” Lacson added.
Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon chimed in, expressing reservations about holding the proposed executive session.
“The requirement that we sign the nondisclosure agreement, to me, is an insult to the Senate … It is degrading for the Senate, as an institution, to agree,” said Drilon.
Senator Grace Poe agreed with the minority leader, saying that senators should not be silent on the matter.
“An open hearing or a public hearing is much better,” Poe said.
Furthermore, he pointed out that the specialists of the Senate hearing “cannot hide behind an executive.”
He explained that the chamber, with two-thirds of the votes, can allow the disclosure of the “procedure in an executive session.”
“This has happened a few times, if I’m not mistaken, during the Atio Castillo hearing and also in some of the executive sessions that we have had at the Mamasapano,” Poe said.
“That is something to remember when requesting an executive session. Otherwise, if we keep quiet about these matters, it would almost appear that we are allowing them to continue the unsound practices that they are doing, “he added.
When asked if the Senate Committee of the Whole would still go into executive session during Friday’s hearing, Sotto told reporters in a Viber message: “Executive session only if necessary and the appropriate motion passes.”
Previously, Gálvez said the country’s agreements with other companies would be compromised if he disclosed how much they offered their vaccines to the Philippine government.
The Philippine government has already secured 25 million doses of China’s Sinovac vaccine, 50,000 of which will arrive in February.
The Philippines also previously signed an agreement with the Serum Institute of India for 30 million doses of the Covovax COVID-19 vaccine, which will be available by the third quarter of 2021.
Meanwhile, the government will purchase 30 million doses of the vaccine from British pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca and 25 million doses of the Russian Sputnik V vaccine.
KGA
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