The Department of Health on Friday revealed that while it has been regularly holding biddings, the country has yet to clinch an agreement with a cold storage facility.
“The bidding has been continuous naman. It has been regular. Ang problema, halos lahat nadisqualify doon sa initial run ng aming procurement kasi may mga requirements kami based on our terms of reference that was not able to be complied with these 3rd party logistics na nag-apply sa amin,” Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said during a briefing.
(The bidding has been continuous. It has been regular. The problem is that almost all were disqualified during the initial run of our procurement because we have a requirement based on the terms of reference that was not complied with the 3rd party logistics applying.)
Vergeire explained that government procurement laws state that they can only provide the payment once the service is rendered or there are receivables already.
“I think because of this big transaction medyo may issue ’yan sa mga nagbi-bid na 3rd party logistics kasi wala pwedeng ibigay na parang advance payment,” she said.
(I think since this is a big transaction the 3rd party logistics companies have an issue with that because they are unable to receive advance payment.)
Vergeire said the department could not change the system since it is part of the law followed when it comes to bidding.
The health official said the DOH currently does not have problems because there is enough capacity in government facilities and that there are groups helping them.
“Tinitignan lang natin, kailangan lang natin maisiguro na meron tayong makuha dahil ’pag dumating na ’yung most of the bulk na ino-order nating bakuna kakailanganin talaga natin itong logistics firm na ito,” she said.
(We just need to ensure that we get one once the bulk orders of vaccines come in because we really need a logistics firm.)
So far, the country has received more than a million vaccines from AstraZeneca and Sinovac. The government, which is expecting more shipments in the coming months, is aiming to inoculate up to 70 million Filipinos, which will require 140 million doses, before the end of the year.
While most vaccines will only require regular refrigerator temperature, messenger RNA vaccines such as that of Pfizer and Moderna, which are both expected to arrive in the Philippines, require ultra cold storage to keep the doses frozen.
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