MANILA, Philippines — Malacañang can take its grievances to court if it is displeased with the decision to make face shields optional in Manila, Mayor Francisco "Isko Moreno" Domagoso said Tuesday.
Speaking in an interview aired over ABS-CBN News Channel, Domagoso argued that the local government unit has the power to make such a decision for the city, adding that his order on the repeal of face shield rules is valid until declared otherwise by a court.
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"Yes, we will [still implement the order], because, under existing laws, we are empowered to protect the interest of our people," Domagoso, who is running for president in the 2022 polls, said in mixed Filipino and English.
"We’ve been campaigning that vaccination is the solution. More than face shield, it’s the vaccine," he also said in a radio interview earlier that same day.
This comes after the Palace said that the order of the capital city's local government unit to strike the requirement is "null and void." Manila's mayor made the announcement Monday, saying it was meant to ease people's spending on face shields.
Citing studies and practices from the United States and other countries, Domagoso urged the government to study the effects of face shields in terms of protecting the general population against COVID-19.
“Please study the effects of face shields because (the) United States of America and all other countries have already shown studies that these have no effect in terms of protection for the general population,” Domagoso said.
"Those with asthma are especially agitated [by face shields.] The senior citizens stumble. Those who walk [while wearing them, they] stumble. [They have] no effect, so why do we continue to torture people?"
Domagoso, the standard-bearer of the Aksyon Demokratiko party, has taken a more critical stance on the Duterte administration.
In the past, he has spoken out publicly in support of the Manila Bay Dolomite beach and the administration's flagship "war on drugs," saying he saw no problem with the former, while giving the government an "A for effort" on the latter.
As a result of his tangent ahead of the 2022 polls, President Rodrigo Duterte has begun criticizing Domagoso in some of his speeches in comments about mayors who have "disorganized" pandemic response programs.
The president did not identify the target of his rants by name but threw pointed references to Domagoso's past career in showbusiness and makign references to "call boys".
Domagoso in the same interview on Tuesday also questioned the economic viability of the proposal to replace face shields with goggles and the "no vaccine, no subsidy" policy being pushed by the Department of the Interior and Local Government.
“What we should do, more than requiring people to spend money on something that is not viable, is accelerate vaccination. Let's go to the provinces,” Domagoso said.
“You cannot penalize them for not being vaccinated. That is unfair...What kind of government are we when we're full of penalties? Why do we make things harder instead of understanding the people?"
The Manila City chief expressed openness to the idea of face shields if the national government's coronavirus task force is able to back the requirement up with science.
"If there will be a study that will show (the viability of face shields) and science will agree that it will protect people, then so be it,” he said.
— Franco Luna