By Nora Soriño
Iligan City Bureau Chief
and Sita Asequia
Correspondent
ILIGAN City ― In an executive order requiring people here to present their vaccination cards as they go about in their daily activities is supposed to take effect today but has been postponed to Dec. 1.
The EO No. 291, series of 2021, signed by Mayor Celso Regencia ordered everyone here to present their cards when driving their public utility jeepneys even as commuters are also required to present theirs upon boarding these transports.
Vendors are also required to present said cards or else they can’t do the selling of their goods. Likewise, transactions with government offices have to present theirs too.
Vaccination sites here, have been swamped with long lines of people waiting for their jabs. Even people who initially did not plan to get vaccinated lined up.
Among the provisions of said EO is that if they couldn’t present their cards even for one dose only, they have to present their negative RT-PCR tests results.
Lawyers here are busy informing the public that such EO is “illegal.”
Lawyer Leo Zaragoza yesterday distributed flyers citing the “illegality” of such order as this is not in the context of RA 11525, dated February 26, 2021. This is “An Act establishing the coronavirus disease 2019 programs expediting the vaccine procurement and administration process, providing funds therefor and for other purposes.”
It also provided in Section 12, the flyer states: Provided further, that the vaccine cards shall not be considered as an additional mandatory requirement for educational, employment and other similar government transactions.”
Lawyer Moises Dalisay, Jr., on a radio program, also shared the same opinion as to its “illegality.” Lawyer Emmanuel Salibay, president of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines-Iligan City/Lanao del Norte chapter, also shared the same opinion.
