Negros Occidental Governor Eugenio Lacson said on Monday that local government units (LGUs) without funds for coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) vaccines can rely on the national government to provide vaccines for their constituents.

“I think we should just trust our national government more,” the governor said in an interview, stressing that he believes that it will fulfill its commitment to vaccinate 70 percent of the Filipino population.

Lacson said the provincial government will prioritize its health workers, and the national government will take care of the vaccination for the remaining Negrenses.

“Don’t think of buying the vaccines because the national government will take care of it. The national government has assured us that it is their duty to vaccinate everyone,” he added.

Lacson said that from the start, President Rodrigo Duterte had said that every Filipino will get vaccines paid for by the national government.

“It became complicated when big cities said ‘we will buy our own’. The impression was every LGU should take care of itself, but that is not the case,” he added.

The provincial government itself committed to buying only 100,000 doses of vaccines, primarily intended for medical front-liners, through an agreement with AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals Philippines Inc.

“As for the balance, we have asked for three million doses from the national government,” Lacson said.

The three million doses will reach some 70 percent of the province’s total population, or some 1.5 million Negrenses needing two doses each.

Several small municipalities in Negros Occidental have raised concerns on how to implement their own vaccination program as they cannot afford to purchase vaccines for their constituents due to lack of funds.

Last week, Provincial Administrator Rayfrando Diaz II said the province is assisting the LGUs in enlisting the persons eligible for vaccination.

The Provincial Health Office is expected to submit soon a detailed list of persons identified and registered by every LGU. (PNA)