PH LIKELY TO SIGN COVID-19 JAB SUPPLY DEAL WITH JOHNSON & JOHNSON SOON

 

 

 

MANILA - The Philippines and Johnson and Johnson will likely sign a COVID-19 vaccine supply agreement "this coming week," the country's inoculation czar said Thursday.

 

The Philippines may also get Janssen's coronavirus vaccines through global alliance COVAX Facility, Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr said.

 

"Inaayos na po natin ang supply agreement...Most likely this coming week baka mapirmahan po natin," he told ANC's Headstart.

 

"Ang maganda po, meron na po siyang EUL (emergency use listing) sa WHO (World Health Organization) so pwede na po siyang kasama sa COVAX."

 

 

 

 

 

PH SEEKS 'STEADY SUPPLY' OF COVID-19 VACCINES FOR 'BETTER CHRISTMAS'

 

 

 

MANILA - The Philippines is seeking a "steady supply" of COVID-19 vaccines as it aims for a "better Christmas" this year, the government's inoculation czar said Thursday.

 

Government aims to immunize 50 to 70 million against the coronavirus this year to achieve herd immunity. Vaccinations will happen in stadiums and mega quarantine facilities, said Secretary Carlito Galvez.

 

Philippines will try to vaccinate 1 million citizens per week in April, 2 million citizens per week in May, and 3 to 5 million per week beginning June, said Galvez.

 

The country has so far inoculated 269,583 healthcare workers in 4,500 vaccination sites nationwide, Galvez said.

 

"Ang US, UK and even 'yung Israel, also India, ang pinakasecret nila is steady supply. Ganun ang gagawin natin na magkaroon tayo ng steady supply na accelerating by month."

 

 

 

 

 

HOUSE ON LOCKDOWN AMID SPIKE IN COVID-19 CASES IN METRO MANILA

 

 

 

MANILA - The House of Representatives temporarily shut down its complex in Quezon City beginning Thursday as COVID-19 cases continue to rise in the capital region.

 

House Speaker Lord Allan Velasco said he ordered the 4-day lockdown as a precautionary measure.

 

House members and most of the employees at the complex will work through online communication platforms during the scheduled committee meetings, public hearings, and other events at the lower chamber during the 4-day lockdown.

 

"Everyone is enjoined to stay at home during the lockdown not just to protect ourselves but also to help arrest the spread of the virus," the House public affairs office said.

 

The complex's media center will also be closed, it added.

 

"Accredited media will still have access through the usual Zoom and livestreaming platforms during plenary sessions, committee meetings, public hearings and other events in the House of Representatives," the office said.

 

"Rest assured that the Media Center will be re-opened as soon as the situation improves."

 

The House has 33 active COVID-19 infections as of Thursday, said Secretary General Mark Llandro Mendoza.

 

 

 

 

 

DESPITE FDA ADVISE, PH GOV'T EYES INOCULATION OF SENIOR CITIZENS WITH SINOVAC COVID-19 VACCINE

 

 

 

MANILA - The Philippine government is eyeing the use of Sinovac’s COVID-19 vaccine on Filipino senior citizens when their vaccination begins around middle of next month, the country’s vaccine czar said Wednesday.

 

That’s despite a previous recommendation from the Philippine Food and Drug Administration to use Sinovac shots only on healthy individuals between ages 18 to 59 years old.

 

“Kasi nakita natin ‘yung Sinovac, very limited po ‘yung side effect,” National COVID-19 Task Force chief implementer Sec. Carlito Galvez Jr. said. “At the same time, walang gaanong wastage ‘yung Sinovac."

 

Around 4 million senior citizens are currently in the government’s masterlist for inoculation, but Galvez said the number could eventually reach 9 million.

 

The Philippines is also looking into the possibility of producing COVID-19 vaccines locally. The government is in talks with the Serum Institute of India.

 

“Gusto nila tulungan tayo na makapag-produce ng sarili nating bakuna,” Galvez said.

 

“Ang mga hakbang na ito ay bahagi ng istratehiya ng pamahalaan na magkaroon ng stable and reliable source ng anti-COVID vaccines. Iyong stratehiya po na gagawin natin with SII, disease elimination by 2022," he said.

 

The Research Institute of Tropical Medicine has reportedly submitted a three-year program to expand its vaccine research and development.

 

 

 

 

 

METRO MANILA SEEING 'SERIOUS SURGE' IN COVID-19 CASES: OCTA GROUP

 

 

 

MANILA — The transmission of COVID-19 in Metro Manila, home to about a tenth of the Philippine population, has recently reached its highest level since May last year, the OCTA Research Group said on Wednesday, describing the situation as a "serious surge" in infections.

 

The group, composed of university professors, noted that the capital region, which around a year ago was the first to be placed on community quarantine to stem the spread of the coronavirus, posted a 78 percent increase in new cases on Tuesday compared to a week ago.

 

“The reproduction number in NCR increased to Rt = 1.96, its highest level since May 2020,” the OCTA Group said in its latest report.

 

A reproduction number or R naught of more than 1 means that the infection is spreading to more people since one infected person can pass the virus to one or more individuals. A reproduction number of 2 means 2 people can be infected by one COVID-19 patient.

 

Officials and analysts have attributed the recent spike in new cases to the increased mobility of people, non-compliance with health protocols, and the presence of more transmissible COVID-19 variants.

 

Besides being classified as high risk based on its daily attack rate of 15.9 per 100,000 of the population, Metro Manila has reached 64 percent occupancy in terms of COVID-dedicated ICU beds, the research group said.

 

 

 

 

 

PDP-LABAN MEMBERS CONTINUE PLEA FOR DUTERTE’S VP RUN DESPITE PACQUIAO WARNING

 

 

 

MANILA — Some members of the ruling Partido Demokratiko Pilipino—Lakas ng Bayan are continuing their push for President Rodrigo Duterte to run for vice president despite the warning from their party president, Sen. Manny Pacquiao, against politicking.

 

“While there is that warning, how can we stop it?” Deputy Secretary General Melvin Matibag told reporters in Filipino on Thursday. “It will run contrary to one of the principles of PDP-Laban which is participatory and consultative democracy.”

 

Matibag said they are continuing their consultative meetings across the country and that local politicians from different parties have been asking to sign the resolution that urges Duterte to run for vice president in the 2022 elections, supposedly for the continuity of his administration’s socioeconomic agenda.

 

Pacquiao and other national leaders of PDP-Laban, however, disowned this call last week and appealed to party members to focus on helping people adversely affected by the pandemic instead of the elections, which is only 14 months away.

 

But Matibag said the appeal for Duterte to run for the second-highest post in the land has taken a life of its own, with him claiming grassroots support for this move.

 

“The request for the president has snowballed. It just shows how popular the president is, how effective his leadership is,” Matibag said. “Even if PDP-Laban will stop, the calls will continue.”

 

Despite some members of PDP-Laban essentially defying the directive of the party’s national leadership, Matibag insists that there is no rift within the party, which has previously faced infighting and the exit of some party members.

 

“That’s the process in PDP-Laban, since we are very democratic, there will be disagreements. But at the end of the day, the PDP-Laban will come out with one position,” he said.

 

A president running for lower office is not unprecedented as the Constitution only bars presidents from seeking reelection to the top political post in the land.

 

Former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo ran for and won a seat in the House after her stint in Malacañang, while former President Joseph Estrada also ran for and won as Manila mayor.

 

 

 

 

 

8 KILLED, 6 OF THEM ASIANS, IN US ATTACKS

 

 

 

ATLANTA – Eight people, six of whom were Asian women, were killed in shootings at three different spas in the US state of Georgia Tuesday, with a 21-year-old man in custody on suspicion of staging all three attacks, police said.

 

The shootings came with many Asian-Americans already on edge following a recent spike in hate crimes against the community, and triggered immediate fears that Asian-run businesses may have been deliberately targeted.

 

Four of the victims were killed at Young’s Asian Massage near Acworth, a suburb of Georgia’s capital city Atlanta, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.

 

aptain Jay Baker of the Cherokee County sheriff’s office told the paper the victims were two Asian women, a white woman and a white man, while a Hispanic man was wounded.

 

The Atlanta police department separately confirmed that four women were found dead at two business establishments in northeast Atlanta, identified as the Gold Massage Spa and Aroma Therapy spa.

 

Police told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that all four Atlanta victims were Asian women.

 

South Korea’s Yonhap News Agency reported the country’s foreign ministry had confirmed that four of the victims were of Korean descent.

 

Authorities have identified Robert Aaron Long as a suspect in all three shootings.

 

Based on the pattern of surveillance video from the shooting scenes, Atlanta police spokesman Sergeant John Chafee told AFP: “It is extremely likely our suspect is the same as Cherokee County’s, who is in custody.”

 

“We are working closely with them to confirm with certainty our cases are related,” he added.

 

 

 

 

 

AMID ACTIVIST KILLINGS, CARPIO REMINDS THE BENCH: SC IS 'ULTIMATE GUARDIAN' OF PEOPLE'S RIGHTS

 

 

 

MANILA — The Supreme Court has power to address issues concerning the bloody Calabarzon raids where nine activists were killed in law enforcers’ service of search warrants, retired Supreme Court Justice Antonio Carpio said in an opinion piece on Thursday.

 

 

In a strongly worded column in the Philippine Daily Inquirer, the retired justice stressed that the 1987 Constitution empowers the SC to promulgate rules in protection of the people’s rights, a provision that is not included in previous charters.

 

Framers of the Constitution included this provision, which cloaks the SC with both a duty and a power, “the responsibility as the ultimate guardian of the constitutional rights of the people.”

 

This provision ensures that the SC can address gaps or inadequacies in the law by promulgating rules to protect the peoples’ rights concurrent with the exercise of its judicial power.

 

“These rules cannot be repealed, altered or supplemented by Congress, making them superior to laws passed by Congress,” the former justice pointed out.

 

 

 

 

 

'NO VIP TREATMENT': FOR THE SECOND TIME, SINAS MAY FACE RAPS OVER HEALTH PROTOCOLS BREACH

 

 

 

MANILA — Police Gen. Debold Sinas, the chief of the national police, could be liable for charges if the provincial government finds in the course of its investigation that he breached coronavirus protocols prior to a visit to Calapan City in Oriental Mindoro.

 

To recall, Sinas tested positive for the coronavirus after he supposedly skirted quarantine rules again when government officials earlier claimed he did not undergo health profiling before his visit.

 

Speaking in an interview aired over ANC, Oriental Mindoro Gov. Humerlito Dolor said that the PNP only directly coordinated with the city government of Calapan, but the provincial government had no prior knowledge of the welcoming party for the police officials.

 

"For me, there's no such thing as a VIP person, no VIP treatment for anybody. If he has violated the law, he should be held responsible," Dolor said.

 

 

 

 

 

THE REST

 

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PRIVATE HOSPITALS HIT CRITICAL LEVEL

 

 

 

MANILA — Twenty hospitals in the National Capital Region (NCR) are now at “critical level” while 23 others are at the “higher risk level” due to the increasing occupancy rates of their COVID-19 wards, the Private Hospitals Association of the Philippines Inc. (PHAPi) said.

 

“When you say high risk, 70 to 85 percent of their beds are occupied and it’s critical if at least 85 percent is up to its capacity,” PHAPi president Jose Rene de Grano said in an interview Tuesday night with “The Chiefs” on OneNews.

 

He noted that if the trend continues, there might be a repeat of the situation back in August 2020, when COVID-19 beds became full in almost every hospital.

 

According to Grano, the health care utilization rate in NCR is around 52 percent, with 90 percent of cases comprised of mild and asymptomatic patients that don’t need hospitalization.

 

“The asymptomatic patients go to the quarantine areas, and then some of the mild and symptomatic go to the hospitals. There are probably 1.5 percent or around 3 percent who are severe or critical cases,” he added.

 

Health Undersecretary and treatment czar Leopoldo Vega yesterday said the recent spike in COVID-19 cases has prompted the One Hospital Command (OHC) to refer Metro Manila patients to health facilities in nearby central Luzon and Calabarzon.

 

He added that from around 80 calls in previous weeks, the OHC is now receiving around 250 calls a day, with most callers inquiring about COVID-19 hospitals that can still accept patients.

 

 

 

 

 

NOVO NORDISK PHILIPPINES LAUNCHES MOVEMENT TO COMBAT OBESITY PANDEMIC

 

 

 

MANILA – Amid the current pandemic that sent the world into a tailspin, another enduring yet often overlooked pandemic continues to plague our communities. Affecting 1 in every 3 Filipinos, obesity is a complex and life-threatening disease that, if left untreated, can contribute to more severe illnesses down the road.

 

The need to curb the ever-growing obesity pandemic has never been more pressing today as individuals suffering from the disease are more prone to comorbidities as well as severe symptoms of COVID-19.

 

“This is a public health concern,” said Zenaida Velasco, president of the Nutritionist-Dietitian’s Association of the Philippines (NDAP), reminding the public that this is an important issue that requires the involvement of the community as a whole.

 

Here, a multi-disciplinary group of doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and nutritionist-dietitians, gathered together to share knowledge about the lesser-known yet equally gravel pandemic of obesity.

 

 

 

 

 

ALERT LEVEL 2 STILL UP IN TAAL VOLCANO; 164 QUAKES RECORDED IN 24 HOURS

 

 

 

TALISAY — Taal Volcano remains in Alert Level 2 as the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and  Seismology (Phivolcs) recorded 164 volcanic quakes in the last 24 hours.

 

In its 8 a.m. bulletin, Phivolcs said 67 volcanic tremor episodes were recorded with durations of one to two minutes. Three hybrid earthquakes were also recorded.

 

“Activity at the main crater consisted of weak emission of steam-laden plumes from fumarolic vents that rose 20 meters high,” Phivolcs said.

 

State volcanologists also observed temperature highs of 71.8 degrees Celsius and pH level of 1.59 at the main crater lake on March 4 and February 12.

 

Ground deformation parameters from electronic tilt, continuous GPS and InSAR data analysis also indicated a “very slow and steady inflation of the Taal region since after the January 2020 eruption”

 

“These parameters may indicate increased magmatic activity at shallow depths beneath the edifice.”

 

 

 

 

 

QUEZON CITY LAUNCHES CONTACT TRACING APP

 

 

 

QUEZON CITY — The Quezon City government yesterday launched a centralized web application for more than 80,000 registered businesses to make the process of contract tracing more efficient to curb the spike of COVID-19 cases.

 

Under KyusiPass, a contact tracing system, all business establishments in the city are provided with free QR codes that would serve as a unique location monitoring code for customers or clients to scan.

 

Margie Santos, who heads the city’s business permits and licensing

 

department (BPLD), assured the public that all their personal information will remain confidential.

 

“Only the city epidemiology and disease surveillance unit (CESU) will see the data on those who checked in using KyusiPass. Even we in the BLPD do not see the data,” she said in a statement.

 

CESU head Dr. Rolly Cruz said the contact tracing app is “efficient in the event a COVID-19 outbreak hits an area of the city. Without delay we can contact people who had been at identified exposure sites.”

 

 

 

 

 

ENTERTAINMENT & LIFESTYLE

 

 

 

 

 

TOGETHER AT RELIEF MISSION, JULIA TELLS GERALD: ‘THANK YOU FOR SHARING YOUR WORLD WITH ME’

 

 

 

MANILA — In the latest public display of their newly confirmed relationship, Julia Barretto thanked her boyfriend Gerald Anderson for “sharing your world with me.”

 

In an Instagram Stories update, Barretto shared photos of her and Anderson interacting with Aeta children during their recent relief mission in Iba, Zambales.

 

Re-posting Barretto’s update, Anderson wrote: “Doing our little part,” with a heart emoji.

 

The relief operation, held on March 6, was spearheaded by Anderson to mark his birthday, according to the Department of Transportation.

 

Anderson, an auxiliary officer of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) with the rank of lieutenant, turned 32 on March 7.

 

Barretto, meanwhile, turned 24 only days later on March 10.

 

The distribution of relief goods benefited some 300 Aeta families in Barangay San Agustin, according to the PCG.

 

The relief operation marked Barretto and Anderson’s first public appearance since they confirmed being a couple earlier that week.

 

 

 

 

 

SPORTS

 

 

 

 

 

NBA SCORES MARCH 16

 

 

 

FINAL

 

           1          2          3          4          T

 

Jazz  29-10       20        34        23        40        117

 

Celtics  20-19    22        31        26        30        109

 

SCORING LEADERS

 

            D. Mitchell UTA

 

21 PTS, 2 REB, 5 AST

 

            J. Tatum BOS

 

29 PTS, 6 REB, 3 AST

 

 

 

FINAL

 

           1          2          3          4          T

 

Hawks  20-20    35        38        20        26        119

 

Rockets  11-27  22        36        34        15        107

 

SCORING LEADERS

 

            D. Gallinari ATL

 

29 PTS, 6 REB, 0 AST

 

            V. Oladipo HOU

 

34 PTS, 3 REB, 5 AST

 

 

 

FINAL

 

           1          2          3          4          T

 

Cavaliers  14-25            26        22        28        22        98

 

Heat  22-18       37        25        33        18        113

 

SCORING LEADERS

 

            C. Sexton CLE

 

21 PTS, 1 REB, 3 AST

 

            J. Butler MIA

 

28 PTS, 12 REB, 4 AST

 

 

 

FINAL

 

           1          2          3          4          T

 

Knicks  20-21    21        35        26        14        96

 

76ers  28-12     20        28        25        26        99

 

SCORING LEADERS

 

            J. Randle NY

 

19 PTS, 15 REB, 8 AST

 

            T. Harris PHI

 

30 PTS, 6 REB, 2 AST

 

 

 

FINAL

 

           1          2          3          4          T

 

Thunder  17-23 28        35        16        23        102

 

Bulls  18-20       42        29        31        21        123

 

SCORING LEADERS

 

            S. Gilgeous-Alexander OKC

 

21 PTS, 1 REB, 1 AST

 

            Z. LaVine CHI

 

40 PTS, 4 REB, 2 AST

 

 

 

FINAL

 

           1          2          3          4          T

 

Pelicans  17-23 34        30        31        29        124

 

Trail Blazers  23-16       28        22        32        43        125

 

SCORING LEADERS

 

            B. Ingram NO

 

30 PTS, 6 REB, 2 AST

 

            D. Lillard POR

 

50 PTS, 6 REB, 10 AST

 

 

 

FINAL

 

           1          2          3          4          T

 

Timberwolves  9-31       30        40        24        27        121

 

Lakers  27-13    31        40        31        35        137

 

SCORING LEADERS

 

            A. Edwards MIN

 

29 PTS, 4 REB, 1 AST

 

            M. Harrell LAL

 

25 PTS, 4 REB, 6 AST

 

 

 

 

 

INDICATORS

 

 

 

FOREX $1 = P 48.72

 

 

 

 

 

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

 

 

 

Winning is a habit. Unfortunately, so is losing. - Vince Lombardi