ILOILO City – Thirty-five adult residents of the Ati community in Barangay Lanit, Jaro district availed themselves of vaccines against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
“The city government’s inclusive vaccination program is ensuring everyone gets protection from COVID-19,” said Mayor Jerry Treñas.
The city’s vaccination team brought the jabs to the community yesterday morning, according to Hector Alejano, Treñas’ executive assistant for Indigenous Peoples (IP).
The target was supposed to be 50 Ati but 15 sneaked out of the village before the vaccination team arrived.
Alejano, however, noted the willingness of those who stayed to get inoculated.
“Nakaintindi sila kon ano ang importansya sang vaccine. Well-informed man sila sang advantages sang vaccine,” Alejano said.
In an earlier interview with Pastor Rogelio Elosendo, tribal leader of the Ati community, about 30 families consisting of 110 to 130 individuals including children are living in 24 houses erected on a 3,000-square meter area.
Elosendo admitted it is hard to maintain a community where most of the Ati families have to go out on the streets to beg for alms. Only a few of them have decent jobs such as in call centers, security agencies and construction.
Alejano said 15 non-Ati residents of Lanit were administered with anti-coronavirus vaccine to fill up the slots of the 15 Ati who sneaked away.
On the other hand, Alejano noted that there are no more mendicant Badjaos in this city.
Alejano said as early as three months after the pandemic started, they were sent back to their place of origin.
The Department of Health (DOH) Region 6 earlier said it would strengthen its COVID-19 vaccination campaign among members of the IP community.
“We are trying to tap ang persons of influence sa ila community para buligan kita magpa-intindi sa ila nga kinahanglanon ini (vaccination),”according to Dr. Daphynie Teorima, DOH-6 spokesperson.
She added that prior to rolling out the vaccines, health personnel conduct consultation and orientation in the barangays.
DOH-6 has yet to disclose how many IPs have so far been vaccinated against COVID-19.
Teorima said IPs belonged to priority group A5 in DOH’s vaccination prioritization framework.
Meanwhile, in earlier reports, most Panay Bukidnon, an IP community in Barangay Garangan, Calinog, Iloilo, have yet to receive their COVID-19 vaccines.
“Halos tanan sa amon nahadlok,” said Leosita Yangco, daughter of Leopoldo “Tay Polding” Caballero, a Panay Bukidnon epic chanter who recently died of COVID-19.
There were more or less 400 IPs in Barangay Garangan.
Only a few were willing to be vaccinated, said Yangco.
She hoped the Panay Bukidnon would be enlightened about vaccination, adding that she herself was interested.
“Maayo gid kon may mag-edukar para nga masanagan man kami parti sa vaccine,” she said./PN