Photo Release

Waste of people's money: Sen. Risa Hontiveros in a press conference Wednesday, August 3, 2022, laments the reported wastage of COVID-19 vaccines amid the surge of new cases. Citing public reports, she said an estimated 27 million doses worth roughly P13 billion were either unused or near-expiry. "Numerous sectors are clamoring for aid from the government, meanwhile, the officials in charge of our vaccines still manage to waste the people's money. Had we known that this is how the vaccines would end up, we would've given the funds to sectors that were severely affected by the pandemic, like farmers, fishermen, [public utility vehicle] drivers, and frontliners," Hontiveros said in Filipino. (Senate PRIB Photos)