NGCP proposes tax-exempt vaccine deals for private companies

Danessa Rivera (The Philippine Star) - December 24, 2020 - 12:00am
https://www.philstar.com/business/2020/12/24/2065893/ngcp-proposes-tax-exempt-vaccine-deals-private-companies

MANILA, Philippines — The National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) is seeking the support of Congress to allow private companies to procure COVID-19 vaccines tax-free.

NGCP president and CEO Anthony Almeda said they are asking Congress to pass a law encouraging the private sector to provide vaccination to employees.

“Vaccination, as well as mass testing, is focally critical in the fight against COVID-19. We need to prevent, detect, isolate and treat. We need to jumpstart the economy now, but we need to ensure that we stack the odds against infections in the workplace,” he said.

“With a vaccination program in place for the private sector, more businesses and industries will be able to regain some semblance of normal activity, bounce back, and put the economy on its way to recovery after almost a year of slowdown,” Almeda said.

The NGCP official also appealed to lawmakers to allow private companies to import, tax-free, COVID-19 vaccines for the use of their employees.

He said this would enable businesses to give the economy a much-needed boost in activity.

The power grid operator is monitoring the progress and rollout of COVID-19 vaccines in other countries.

It is also assessing the possibility of providing its employees, including essential personnel composed of grid dispatchers and transmission line personnel, with the necessary doses as soon as these become available. NGCP has a 5,000-strong workforce.

The company is also pushing other public and private entities to protect their employees.

“We encourage our counterparts in both the public and private sectors to be similarly proactive in protecting their employees, so that we can keep the economy running at full speed,” Almeda said.

NGCP said it continues to help local governments, national health agencies, and various communities fight the disease.

It earlier donated P1 billion to the national government to aid Filipinos in the early days of quarantine protocols.

About 1.25 million food bags, 10 mechanical ventilators, 6 RT-PCR machines, 20,520 test kits, 100 test booths, and testing services, 9 ambulances, 1 isolation room, and 4.6 million PPEs (masks, gloves, bunny suits etc.) were donated to over 1,028 LGUs, more than 300 public and private medical facilities, and countless other public and private organizations.

Just this month, NGCP donated three additional ambulances to various local governments hosting its facilities, and 10,000 test kits, 50 test booths, and testing services to Pasay City.

NGCP is a Filipino-led, privately owned company in charge of operating, maintaining, and developing the country’s power grid, led by majority shareholders and vice chairman Henry Sy Jr. and co-vice chairman Robert Coyiuto Jr.