News Roundup 08 September 2021
Sep 08, 2021 • 4 min Read
DOH logs 12,751 more COVID-19 cases | PHILSTAR.COM – The Philippines on Wednesday reported 12,751 new coronavirus cases to bring the country’s total to 2,134,005. Today’s figures saw active cases down by 7,502 from the 158,637 on September 7. The Department of Health said five laboratories did not submit test results.
- Active cases: 151,135 or 7.1% of the total
- Recoveries: 20,151, bringing the number to 1,948,198
- Deaths: 174, or now 34,672 in total
DOH attributed the relatively low numbers reported to “technical issues encountered in the extraction of updated data from COVIDKaya” yesterday, September 7.
Lacson, Sotto formally launch tandem for 2022 elections | PHILSTAR.COM – Sen. Panfilo Lacson and Senate President Vicente Sotto III on Wednesday officially launched their bid for the country’s two highest posts. Lacson will be seeking the presidency — a second attempt after a failed 2004 bid — while Sotto will be running for vice president. A first spurred by the pandemic, the event was pretaped in front of a small live audience and other viewers who joined through videoconference. A 30-minute cut of the event was streamed on the candidates’ social media pages. Emphasized by both senators were the more than 80 years of public service between them. “We have the proven competence, integrity, and courage to lead the country so we can rise from the rut we are in,” Lacson said in his speech delivered in Filipino. He also took a swipe at President Rodrigo Duterte, referencing the chief executive’s final SONA where he admitted that he was wrong to think that governing a country would be as easy as governing Davao City.
Isko fires back at Roque: It isn’t politics to argue people need medicines, not face shields | INQUIRER.NET – Manila Mayor Isko Moreno on Wednesday fired back at Malacañang’s accusation that his call for more medicines instead of face shields was merely political bluster aimed at gaining more votes in the 2022 elections. In an ambush interview, Moreno said he had no idea why his pronouncements were taken to be politically motivated when people needed medication more than face shields to combat COVID-19. “Straight talk tayo. Ano ang mahalaga, ‘yong manawagan ka sa iyong pamahalaan na iyong inaasahan, ito po ang kailangan namin. What is offending there, what is politics there? Sinasabi lang naming mga mamamayan na gamot po ang kailangan namin, hindi face shield. Gamot, attorney, gamot ang kailangan ng tao,” Moreno told reporters. (Let’s do straight talk. Isn’t it important to call on the government and tell them what is needed? What is offending there, what is politics there? We are only saying that we need are medicines, not face shields. We need medicines, attorney, people need medicines.) Without naming names, Moreno appeared to be alluding to presidential spokesman Harry Roque, who, reacting to the mayor’s pronouncement, said in his regular Palace briefing last Sept. 6 that the government had been anticipating such statements from a “candidate” with eyes on the 2022 elections.
Gordon: Duterte ‘covering his tracks’ in overpriced COVID-19 supplies purchase | Manila Bulletin – Senator Richard Gordon on Wednesday, September 8, accused President Duterte of covering up the alleged overpricing in the government’s procurement of personal protective equipment (PPEs) and other equipment amid the pandemic “[He is] covering his tracks, trying to protect his people, because people like people who are loyal to their people. It’s a false sense of leadership,” Gordon said in an interview with ABS-CBN News Channel. “To me, there’s an absence of leadership. He’s not very hands on. He has meetings at night, and when he has meetings at night, he flays away at everybody including us now,” he added. Duterte has been lashing out at Gordon and other senators for digging up supposed irregularities on purchases made by the Department of Budget and Management’s Procurement Service (DBM-PS) in behalf of the Department of Health (DOH). During the Senate Blue Ribbon Commiittee’s probe, senators particularly questioned the award of over P8 billion in contracts to a newly-registered foreign firm whose supplies are more expensive than those offered by local manufacturers. They suspected plunder in the deals as they linked the executives of Pharmally Pharmaceutical Corporation to Duterte’s former economic adviser and friend, businessman Michael Yang. Gordon, chairman of the Blue Ribbon panel, maintained that Duterte should be the first to castigate his appointees for any anomalies. “Parang minadali para mabenta nila agad at ‘yong kaibigan mo ay umasenso — wala akong sinasabi na kaibigan mo ang binigyan — pero nagtataka ko na ‘yong kaibigan ng kaibigan ng Presidente ang [binilhan] (It appears that they rushed the procurement so that they friends can benefit — although I’m not saying that your friend benefitted from it — but I’m wondering that the friends of the President’s friend was chosen for the purchase),” he said. “I’m just going by the facts,” he maintained.
