‘If you were to give the guys in charge of our anti-virus program a yearend assessment (and a bonus), what rating would you give them?’
IN the early part of last year, in an interview after interview after interview, Secretary Carlito Galvez kept on assuring the Filipino nation that we would have a happy Christmas.
In some of the interviews he expressed, over and over again, his firm confidence that under the inoculation plan that he was in charge of, we would meet the so-called “herd immunity” target of being able to vaccinate 80% (or was it 70%?) of the entire target population by year’s end.
And he was clear — it was the end of the year 2021.
Around the middle of last year, the government began singing a slightly different tune.
Instead of the phrase “herd immunity,” which is commonly used in medicine in particular and science in general, they started using a new phrase “herd protection” or “population protection.” What this was precisely, I no longer recall, but it was not the achievement of the 70-80% immunization target that every discussion of population immunization talks about.
By the start of the third quarter of last year, the “herd immunity” catchphrase was to be heard on and off, and this time in relation only to the people of Metro Manila. Apparently, the government decided to concentrate the vaccination program in Metro Manila or NCR because this region contributed about half or a little over half of the country’s economic output. Not surprisingly, case rates began climbing in such places as Davao, Cebu, Bacolod, Iloilo and even GenSan — precisely because the priority area was NCR. Protect NCR and you greatly increase the potential for a quicker recovery.
Herd immunity yes, but only for NCR.
Today, NCR is the hotbed of the latest COVID surge. And this surge may have its roots in the Christmas celebrations because, as promised, we were to have a happy Christmas.
Even if by Christmastime only about 55% of our population had been fully vaccinated, most of them with good old Sinovac, and most of them soon reaching the point where the initial vaccine was no longer as effective as a deterrent against the virus because over time the effectivity dwindles, not to mention the fact that the many virus mutations seem to have made the original vaccine less and less effective.
So by end-2021 we didn’t have herd immunity, we didn’t even have population protection, and the very area which the government wanted to protect to boost the chances of the economic recovery is now the hotbed of the Omicron surge.
If you were to give the guys in charge of our anti-virus program a yearend assessment (and a bonus), what rating would you give them?
Since February 2020, or more than a year before I was taken critically ill by the virus myself, I’ve made known my position about the Secretary of Health’s fitness for the job.
But like most people I was puzzled why he remained there. And that’s because we had no idea about Pharmally.
So I shifted my hopes to the others in charge, the “technocrats” who are said to be able to get things done.” But did they? Did we ever establish a working tracing system? Did our vaccine procurement program focus on the best ones or did we hone in on the Chinese ones for one reason or another — and then harp on “the best vaccine is the one in your arm?”
Frankly, if not for the efforts of the private sector, the 55% achievement would be even far lower.
And today we hear of a DOH executive making excuses about why there’s no longer a focus on tracing. Something that sounds to me like a surrender. But in a way her reasoning is solid — we can now expect every family to have someone positive! Except it misses the initial point: that from Day One, those in charge flubbed it. And then they were swamped by many with the proper connections who could make the most of a terrible situation.
So I guess this is surrender.
At least until May when we have that unique chance to win back this country and put effective and decent government in charge.
