Kiko, Risa call for stop to DOTr's 'no vaccine, no ride' policy

Two oppositions senators on Tuesday urged the government to halt or reconsider the “no vaccine, no ride” policy being implemented by the Department of Transportation (DOTr).

In a statement, vice presidential aspirant and Senator Francis Pangilinan said the government must set up vaccination stations in transportation hubs and similar places instead of imposing a “draconian” policy.

“Parusa itong no-vaxx, no-ride policy sa mga mahihirap nating kababayan na gusto lang maghanapbuhay, at walang sariling sasakyan. Dagdag parusa rin sa mga naka-first dose lang kung hindi pa sila papayagang makagamit ng mass transport. Karamihan sa kanila ay kakarampot na nga ang sahod, tapos hindi pa natin sila pasasakayin sa mga dyip para makapagtrabaho? Buti nga sila bumabangon para magtrabaho,” Pangilinan said.

(This no vaxx, no ride policy is a punishment for our countrymen who just want to earn for a living and those who don’t own personal cars. It is also an additional burden to those who only got their first dose. Most of them earns a measly amount of money yet we will not allow them to ride jeepneys so they can go to work.)

“Sigurado ako na kung pwede lang silang mag work-from-home ay gagawin nila, pero hindi e. Halata na ang target ng polisiyang ito ay ang ating mahihirap na kababayan,” he added.

(If they just have the choice to work from home, they will take it but they have no other options. The target of this policy is our poor countrymen.)

Pangilinan then cited his running-mate, presidential aspirant and Vice President Leni Robredo’s proposal to make COVID-19 vaccines accessible to the public.

He suggested establishing vaccination hubs in bus terminals such as the Parañaque Integrated Terminal Exchange (PITX).

“Malamang hindi makapagbakuna kasi hindi pwedeng mag-absent sa trabaho at arawan lang din ang kita. Bad trip ang no vaccine-no ride policy kung hindi naman abot-kamay ang mga bakuna sa lahat,” he added.

(Some workers can’t get their vaccines because they can’t afford to skip work as their salary is on a daily basis.)

Attributing the rise of COVID-19 cases to unvaccinated individuals is also unfair, Pangilinan said, as there are no scientific studies backing this claim.

He reiterated the need for the government to “welcome suggestions” in improving its COVID-19 response which include better policies on free testing, improved contact tracing, isolation, and vaccination.

“Hindi natin masusugpo ang COVID kung ang mga polisiya ng gobyerno ay hindi tinitingnan ang katayuan ng mga tao. Ang mga unang hakbang dapat, at matagal na nating sinasabi ito, ay free testing, contact tracing, isolation sa mga may sakit, at bakuna. Ayun, 2022 na, wala pa rin,” he said.

(We won’t resolve this COVID-19 crisis if the policies of the government won’t center on the situation of the people. The first steps as we have been stating since then are free testing, contact tracing, isolation, and vaccination. It’s 2022 already but we are not seeing any improvement.)

Meanwhile, Senator Risa Hontiveros said she recognized the “good intentions” behind the DOTr’s policy, however, it has “unintended consequences.”

She explained that under the current laws, vaccine cards are not a mandatory requirement for educational, employment, and government transaction purposes, adding that vaccination should not be made mandatory yet as most of these vaccines are only granted with emergency use authorization (EUA).

The lawmaker also said that policy may be prone to abuse due to different interpretations and ambiguous implementation.

Since there is no unified system for the vaccination cards, Hontiveros said checking the vaccination status of each passenger would be an additional burden for the drivers and operators.

“Nananawagan ako sa IATF na mas pag-ibayuhin ang contact tracing, pagsuyod sa mga komunidad upang mabakunahan ang lahat ng pwedeng bakunahan, at mas pinalakas na information drive. Ilang taon na rin tayong nananawagan na paabutin sa 150,000 ang PCR tests kada araw. Mas kailangan ito ng ating mga kababayan kaysa sa isa nanamang uri ng lockdown, tulad ng ‘no vax, no ride,’” she said.

(I am calling on the IATF to improve its contact tracing, go to the communities to ramp up the vaccination program, and boost the government's information drive. It’s been years since we started calling for 150,000 PCR tests per day. This is what our countrymen need not another form of lockdown such as the “no vax, no ride” policy.)

“Umaapela rin tayo sa mga awtoridad, lalo na ang mga lokal na pamahalaan, na irekonsidera ang pagpasa ng mga polisiya o ordinansa, na lalong magpapahirap at magdadag pasanin at diskriminasyon sa ating kababayan, bakunado man o hindi,” she added.

(We are also appealing to the authorities, especially the local government units, to reconsider the approval of policies or ordinances that would become additional burden and cause of discrimination to our countrymen.)

On Tuesday, Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III said unvaccinated workers may avail of public transportation on their way to their respective workplaces.

The government official made the clarification following public outcry regarding the measure.

The “no vaccination, no ride” policy of the DOTr took effect in the National Capital Region on Monday. —NB, GMA News