Lacson Says Duque “Dropped The Ball” On Pfizer Deal
DUQUE “DROPPED THE BALL” – Recently, Foreign Affairs Secretary Teddy Locsin said somebody “dropped the ball” for the Philippines’ Pfizer deal.
A few days later, some senators were giving out hints and telling the public that they’d have a good idea as to who that person was. However, things became crystal clear after Senator Panfilo Locsin name-dropped who “dropped the ball”.
According to an article from Inquirer, Lacson said there had already been negotiations between U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and DFA Secretary Locsin. Furthermore, he said that it was already arranged by PH Ambassador to the US Jose Romualdez since July this year.
With the deal in place, the Philippines could’ve potentially procured the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines come January 2021. As per the article, Lacson told reporters:
They could have secured the delivery of 10 million Pfizer vaccines as early as January next year, way ahead of Singapore but for the indifference of Sec. Duque who failed to work on the necessary documentary requirement namely, the Confidentiality Disclosure Agreement (CDA) as he should have done
Furthermore, he emphasized that the country representative of Pfizer took it upon himself to follow up on the submission of required documents. Additionally, he asserted that Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III gave his word to Locsin and Romualdez that funds would be allocated for the vaccine procurement.
Meanwhile, as a response to Locsin’s earlier “dropped the ball” statement, Duque said there was an ongoing negotiation with Pfizer. Moreover, the Health Secretary said, “there is no such thing as dropping the ball”.
However, Lacson noted that while Duque’s statements about an ongoing negotiation were true, Romualdez said that it was a “renewed initiative after they missed the bus the first time“.
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