Manila Bulletin
Roque clarifies: 'I never said PNoy admin purchased overpriced PPEs'
Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque clarified on Thursday that he never stated the personal protective equipment (PPE) acquired by the previous Aquino administration was overpriced.
Roque explained that he cited the P3,500 per piece cost of the previous administration's PPEs to highlight that the P1,950 price for PPEs procured by the current administration was not overpriced.
He argued that if the P3,500 price was not considered overpriced, then the P1,950 price should also not be deemed as such.
Roque had previously mentioned the PPEs from the prior administration during a press briefing on Wednesday while defending the DBM's procurement of PPEs at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic last year.
Additionally, Roque dismissed Senator Franklin Drilon's remark that labeled him as a troll during Thursday's press briefing.
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Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque challenged Senator Franklin Drilon to explain the previous administration's purchase of PPEs at a higher cost than the current government's.
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Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon criticized presidential spokesperson Harry Roque for allegedly diverting public attention from the issue of overpriced pandemic supplies.
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Vice President Leni Robredo described criticisms against the Aquino administration's purchase of personal protective equipment (PPE) as a diversionary tactic by the current administration to hide its own alleged anomalies.
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President Rodrigo Duterte defended the government's multi-billion peso procurement of personal protective equipment (PPE) last year, asserting that no corruption was involved.
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Vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr. and National Task Force (NTF) Deputy Chief Implementer Vince Dizon defended the government's procurement of expensive personal protective equipment (PPE) during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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