Sen. Risa Hontiveros demanded a review on the spending of public funds allocated for COVID-19 response and how special powers were used to boost the government’s efforts to the health crisis.
Despite the additional powers and billions of funds allocated, the government is still failing to meet its health and economic relief targets, Hontiveros said in her privilege speech.
“We should have established sufficient infrastructure and mustered enough human resources to adequately respond to this health crisis. However, this is clearly not the case,” she said.
“Apat na buwan na ang nakakaraan. Bilyon-bilyon ang pondo na nasa kamay ng pamahalaan at malawak ang kapangyarihan na ibinigay natin sa Pangulo pero hanggang ngayon, wala pa rin tayong pinangako nilang 30,000 tests per day. Hindi rin malinaw kung na-flatten na ba ang curve ng pandemiya,” she said.
[Four months have passed. The government holds billions of funds and the President has wide-ranging powers, but until now, they have yet to deliver the promised 30,000 COVID tests per day. It is also unclear if we have already flattened the pandemic’s curve]
Hontiveros further criticized the Department of Health for the ‘anomalous’ procurementp ersonal protective equipment (PPEs) and testing kits.
