STATEMENT OF SEN. WIN GATCHALIAN ON THE INCLUSION OF BASIC EDUCATION FRONTLINERS IN THE A4 PRIORITY LIST

The inclusion of basic education frontliners in the A4 priority list of the COVID-19 vaccination program is a crucial step in ensuring that our learners can return safety to schools when face-to-face classes resume and that they will not be left behind by their peers in Asia and the rest of the world. I thank and commend the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) for heeding the call to move basic education frontliners higher in the COVID-19 vaccine prioritization list.

The Senate's Adopted Resolution No. 92, which earlier called for the immediate launch of pilot tests of limited face-to-face classes in low-risk areas, also sought the prioritization of teachers in the COVID-19 vaccination program. Prior to the adoption of this resolution, teachers and non-teaching staff have been serving as frontliners to collect and distribute learning modules. Prioritizing them for vaccination will inspire confidence that they will not be victims of severe transmission of the virus.

The sooner we get the vaccines in the arms of our teachers and non-teaching staff, the sooner we can restore normalcy in the lives of our learners and start the recovery of our basic education sector.