The COVID-19 vaccination hub built by ports billionaire Enrique Razon is now open as the government ramps up inoculations to fight the spread of the highly contagious coronavirus Delta variant.
The hub located in the Nayong Pilipino complex was inaugurated Thursday and currently functions as a drive-thru vaccination site. Facilities for walk-ins will be operational by September, ICTSI executive vice-president Christian Martin Gonzalez said.
"This sits on government land, it will remain government land, and will be operated under the guidance of the national and city government,” Gonzalez said in a statement.
An initial 50,000 doses of Moderna COVID-19 vaccines were allocated for use at the site according to the National Task Force on COVID-19 Response. The facility can handle up to 15,000 vaccinations per day depending on the supply of jabs.
While the facility is located in Parañaque City, it will accommodate individuals from different LGUs with priority given to indigent populations. Authorities have said that they expect the facility to help boost inoculations in neighboring provinces Cavite and Laguna.
According to Parañaque Mayor Edwin Olivarez, the initial plan is for local government units to shuttle their indigent populations to the site for vaccinations.
"Para magkaroon po yung A5 natin, yung indigent (population) ng vaccination," Olivarez said.
In May, the construction of the vaccination hub courted controversy after Nayong Pilipino said that the site for the mega-vaccination hub is an "urban forest" filled with wildlife. ICTSI denied the allegation, saying the facility would be built in a "deserted" area.
So far, the Philippines has fully vaccinated some 12 million of its people against COVID-19.
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