ANGELES CITY, Feb. 22 (PIA) -- The city government of Angeles mandated the creation of a working committee that will focus on its COVID-19 vaccination program.

Mayor Carmelo Lazatin Jr. said the primary task of the committee is to plan and organize the roll-out of the COVID-19 vaccines for all Angelenos.

"The working committee will oversee everything from the procurement, to the storage and handling of the vaccines, the transport of the vaccines to 33 barangays, and most important of all, the efficient vaccination of all Angelenos," he said.

The mayor added that he issued an executive order creating sub-committees of the said working group and designating specific roles to key city hall officials.

These include sub-committees on Vaccine Operations Center and Vaccine Deployment; Post-Vaccination/Adverse Events Following Immunization (AEFI) Center; Ways and Means; Storage Facility and Disposal; Survey and Database/Data Banking and Masterlisting; Identification and Preparation of the Vaccination; Digital Survey; Monitoring; Stocks and Inventory; and Advocacy, Information, and Community Involvement.

Meanwhile, in preparation for the vaccine roll-out, the working committee discussed the immediate establishment of a Vaccination Operation Center and Data Base Center.

During the meeting, Lazatin and other city hall officials volunteered to be inoculated first when the vaccines will be made available in the city.

"We need to advocate to our constituents the importance of having been vaccinated against COVID-19. It is our duty as citizens to protect ourselves and our loved ones against this disease, to prevent further spread and mitigate the negative impacts of the virus," the mayor said.

The city is currently in the process of securing a PhP600-million loan for the procurement of the vaccines. It targets to vaccinate all its 411,634 residents against COVID-19. (CLJD/MJSC-PIA 3)