Resigned Nayong Pilipino Exec: Law Must Be Followed In Building Mega Vaccination Facility

UPDATED: On May 6, the Nayong Pilipino Foundation (NPF) said its Board of Trustees has approved the use of its property in Parañaque City as mega vaccination facility as part of the government’s plan to beat COVID-19, but expressed concerns over health, legal and environmental implications of the project.

In its statement, the NPF said it is currently hosting a quarantine facility operated by the Armed Forces of the Philippines, thus its management is coordinating with the Department of Health (DOH) and the military to ensure that the vaccination site does not pose risks to the patients in the COVID-19 facility and the vaccinees.

It also sought clarification from the National Task Force Against COVID-19 (NTF) and the DOH as to the governance structure for the vaccination facility, as statements by Department of Tourism (DOT) officials revealed that ICTSI Foundation will operate and manage the facility.

NPF said this led to questions about the propriety of allowing a private foundation to use government property contrary to Presidential Decree No. 1445. ICTSI Foundation is part of the Razon group of companies. “Legal issues are being studied to ensure full compliance with all laws, rules, and regulations,” the NPF stated.

The NPF also stressed that environmental laws must be complied with as the property “is not a vacant lot but has a thriving urban forest that hosts a variety of urban wildlife and is the last remaining grassland in the reclaimed area of Parañaque.”

“The abrupt cutting of close to 500 trees and other site works on the NPF property will kill the existing ecosystem,” NPF said.

Read more: Nayong Pilipino, Quirino Grandstand Eyed As Mega Vaccination Sites

The NPF statement prompted NTF chief implementer and vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr., the DOT, Malacañang and even billionaire Enrique Razon Jr., chairman of the board and president of the International Container Terminal Services (ICTSI), to counter the state-run park’s officials, particularly its executive director –  lawyer Lucille Karen Malilong-Isberto, who resigned due to the issue.

On Sunday, May 9, Galvez released a statement saying that they do not wish to downplay the position taken by the NPF board but “it must surely know the urgency of the situation our nation is confronting.”

“The establishment of the mega vaccination center at the Nayong Pilipino (property) will help accelerate the implementation of our National Vaccination Program, as it will enable us to vaccinate around 10,000 individuals daily,” Galvez said.

The site involves a reclaimed land owned by NPF at Entertainment City in Parañaque.

Galvez noted that the construction of these mega vaccination sites is in line with the national government’s strategy of expanding the coverage of immunization program.

With regard to environmental issues, Galvez assured the NPF and the public that this concern “has been carefully considered” and that this was the reason why the ICTSI Foundation obtained the services of architect Felino “Jun” Palafox to design the facility.

“Moreover, we believe it is inappropriate for the NPF to equate the fate of 500 ipil-ipil trees with the lives of hundred of thousands if not millions of Filipinos. Moreover, the proposed site of the facility is a reclaimed piece of land and not  a protected forest or a marine sanctuary,” Galvez said.

Galvez added Razon’s ICTSI Foundation offered to build the facility at no cost to the government.

Galvez called on the NPF to sign the memorandum of agreement (MOA) for the project as soon as possible. “We can no longer afford to waste time. The future of our people and nation depends on it.”

To recall, the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Infectious and Emerging Diseases (IATF-EID) issued Resolution No. 109 dated April 10, which approved the building of a mega vaccination facility on the 9.5-hectare NPF property.

Despite the issuance of this resolution, the NPF Board of Trustees has yet to sign a MOA with the NTF.

Due to the delay in the signing of this MOA, Executive secretary Salvador Medialdea released a memorandum on May 4 directing the NPF “to undertake any and all acts necessary to allow the DOH or the NTF to use the NPF property.”

The NPF issued the statement on May 6 in response to Medialdea’s memorandum.

Last May 7, DOT Secretary Berna Romulo-Puyat also threw her full support for the project, which she described as a “game changer for the vaccination program.”

During a press briefing on Monday, May 10, presidential spokesman Harry Roque also reminded the NPF that all government-owned and controlled corporations (GOCC) are under the supervision of the Office of the President.

"I hope their decisions will not go against the very important mission to take care of the lives of our countrymen," Roque said in Filipino.

Razon also lashed out at Isberto on Saturday, May 8, for opposing the project, saying that its management was putting more importance on easily grown ipil-ipil trees than the millions of Filipinos who would be inoculated at the proposed site.

Razon told the Philippine Daily Inquirer that, “I am at a loss for words to describe (Isberto) and others at Nayong Filipino! “What planet do these idiots come from?”

 Follow the law

On Tuesday, May 11, Isberto clarified that the agency does not oppose the government’s idea to build a mega vaccination facility on NPF's property.

In an interview with ABS-CBN News Channel, Isberto said they have already given the approval for the use of NPF land as a mega vaccination facility on April 8 and they are just waiting for a request from the DOH that “it needs the land.”

“What we asked is that we follow all the legal processes for use of the land under an emergency,” Isberto said.

“So where's the request from the Department of Health that it needs the land? That's what we were looking for, especially since during a meeting at the national vaccination operations committee, the DOH signified that it was not asking for the land,” she added.

Isberto emphasized that what NPF wanted is to just follow the law, which means that the MOA should come from the proper government agency and not from the private sector.

“What happened was the proposal came from the private sector, ICTSI Foundation. The laws required that the use of public land should be public, which means that it should be a government agency running it. So in this case, we were waiting for the DOH,” she said.

Isberto stressed that it will be illegal for NPF to give the land for free use to ICTSI Foundation based on “a mere letter” and a “YouTube video.”  She was referring to the video that features a vaccination facility in the United States that “looks like a parking lot,” and which would be the model for vaccination site to be built.

“Can we allow the private sector to use it?” Isberto said.

Isberto disclosed the NPF has been writing Galvez and the DOH asking for details of the project so that “the proper MOA setting forth that the use of the land is for an emergency purpose [is] clear” but there had been no replies.

Isberto said the NPF is also wondering why Galvez and the DOH are making it appear that they are against the project because of the cutting of close to 500 trees.

“It (Nayong Pilipino property) is within the buffer zone of a protected area. Environmental laws are still in place and we still have the duty to comply [with] those environment laws,” she noted. “So that's what we pointed out, if you're going to be building anything there, then let's go through the process of building within the buffer zone of a protected area.”

DOT rushing NPF to enter into an agreement?

Isberto claimed it was the DOT that was rushing the NPF to enter into an agreement when it is supposed to be the DOH that is in charge of the vaccination.

Is it because NPF is under DOT? Isberto said “no” as NPF is an attached agency and the power of the DOT over them is just supervisory.

“But it does not exercise the power of control which is to substitute its judgment over the board,” she stressed.

Isberto said an executive order from President Duterte would have made the process “faster” rather than asking the NPF board.

“We're waiting for the DOH to say that it needs the land. And then we'll execute the proper MOA, or of course, the President can always issue an executive order and then that would be the end of it, there's no need for a MOA anymore,” she explained.

On the issue that the NPF is asking for a specific amount in exchange for the use of part of the property, Isberto said it is not allowed under the law as it will be used pursuant to an emergency.

“So what's the proof that it's an emergency? We thought that should be the DOH saying that your land is needed for vaccination,” she asked.

Why did Isberto resign? “I don’t like being rushed into doing things that are iffy,” she said when asked if she would reconsider her decision.

She added she is just waiting for her resignation to be accepted by the President.

Isberto said it was Duterte who told them to follow the law and do the right thing. “We want to make sure that all the laws are followed, especially in light of the history of (Nayong Pilipino), and all the scandals it was involved (in). We want strict compliance.”

In 2018, Duterte fired the entire board of the NPF for approving a “grossly disadvantageous deal,” on the same day Chinese casino operator Landing International Development Ltd.’s groundbreaking of its $1.5-billion integrated resort and casino on the foundation’s property called NayonLanding.

The development will rise on a 95,700-square meter site leased from the NPF for 25 years, which can be extended for another 25. – With Alexis Romero, Jose Rodel Clapano