News Roundup 10 January 2021
Jan 10, 2021 • 4 min Read
DOH adds 1,906 coronavirus cases as tally breaches 487,000 | PHILSTAR.COM – The country’s coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caseload hit 487,690 Sunday after the Department of Health logged another 1,906 infections. According to the DOH’s latest case bulletin issued that afternoon, the total number of recoveries now stands at 458,198 after another 8,592 patients were reported by the DOH to have survived the virus, good for a 94.0% recovery rate. However, the death toll linked to the pathogen rose to 9,405 after another 8 deaths were recorded. Among the total cases, exactly 20,087 — or 4.1% of the total cases — are marked as active cases, referring to patients who are still recovering in hospitals or quarantine facilities.
VP tells solons: Direct energies to COVID-19 response instead of charter change | PHILSTAR.COM – Lawmakers pushing to amend the 1987 Constitution should instead focus on legislation that could help the country respond better to the coronavirus pandemic and recover from its impact, Vice President Leni Robredo said Sunday. Calls for changes to the charter resurfaced last week in both chambers of Congress, which some fear could pave the way for extending officials’ term in office, with only 16 months away from the next general elections. Robredo in her weekly radio show sought to remind that the country putting time for matters not related to the pandemic had led to its response being named as among the worst in Asia, citing international findings. “Isa sa mga tinuturong dahilan [ay] kulang ‘yung policy support para ma-cushion ‘yung epekto ng pandemya,” she said over DZXL. “Eh itong policy support manggagaling ‘to both sa executive at legislative tapos nag-iisip tayo ngayon ng charter change.” (One of the factors being pointed out is the lack in policy support to cushion the effects of the pandemic. This has to come from both the executive and legislative and yet we are thinking now of charter change.)
Iloilo City joins LGUs with signed supply deals for AstraZeneca vaccine | INQUIRER.NET – Iloilo City has joined the growing number of local government units (LGUs) that have signed advance purchase deals with British pharmaceutical firm AstraZeneca for its coronavirus vaccine. In a Facebook post on Sunday, Mayor Jerry Treñas said the deal is for the purchase of 600,000 doses of the vaccine for 300,000 Iloilo residents. Valenzuela City and Vigan City in Ilocos Sur have also separately announced Sunday that they have signed supply deals with AstraZeneca for the vaccination of their respective constituents. Quezon City has also inked a deal with the British drugmaker. Other local governments have also set aside funds for the purchase of coronavirus vaccines for their respective constituents to augment the national government’s vaccination drive.
Public confidence in COVID-19 vaccines needs boost —Robredo | Manila Bulletin – Top government officials who will get vaccinated for coronavirus disease must not be done in secret to build public trust on its safety, Vice President Leni Robredo said on Sunday, Jan. 10. During her weekly radio show, Robredo said the public must know when officials will get a vaccine once it becomes available because hiding it from the people only adds to their fears. Robredo cited the public vaccination of US President-elect Joe Biden and outgoing Vice President Mike Pence, as well as Pope Francis and Britain’s Queen Elizabeth who both joined the global vaccination program against COVID-19. “For me, our top officials should not get vaccinated in secret. They should show the people they have nothing to fear [with vaccines],” she said in Filipino. The vice president stressed the priority list for those to be vaccinated should be strictly followed.
Senators raise security concerns on Dito operations | The Manila Times – Senators on Sunday echoed the apprehension of the United States’ government on the security risks that China Telecom (ChinaTel) might bring in the telecommunications industry. Senators Francis Pangilinan, Mary Grace Poe and Ana Theresia Hontiveros, in separate statements, voiced concern over ChinaTel’s entry into the Philippines’ telecom market through Dito Telecoms. Dito Telecoms, the country’s third telco, is 40 percent owned by China Telecommunications Corporation. The Senate is deliberating on the bill that seeks to renew Dito’s franchise for 25 years. The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) recently ordered China Telecom (Americas) Corporation to stop its operation in the US for security reasons.
