Gov. Arthur Yap and the president of the Bohol Medical Society (BMS) finally broke their silence and denied that there is a rift between the provincial government and the medical doctors’ group after there were whispers spread over various platforms sowing intrigues that the two sectors within the Bohol Inter Agency Task Force (BIATF) are in conflict with each other.
In a joint statement released on Thursday, May 6, 2021, the governor and Dr. Jefferson Ong, president of the BMS, clarified that there is no conflict between the 2 sectors within the BIATF, even if there are times they disagree on certain matters.
The full text of the joint statement is published on page 3 of this newspaper.
The statement reads, “The Bohol Provincial Government and the Bohol Medical Society deplore any attempt to drive a wedge between the medical sector and our local government. It is unfortunate that in this time of recent challenges brought about by the sudden surge of COVID-19 cases in the Province, there are those who are attempting to draw us apart rather than rallying us together against our common enemy – the virus.”
The statement further reads: “Ever since the Bohol Provincial Government created the Bohol Inter-Agency Task Force (BIATF), a multi-sectoral task group given the responsibility to lead us in this fight against COVID-19, we have always sought the counsel of multi-sectoral groups. One of those groups is the medical sector. To this day, coordination with them is key to battling Covid 19 since what we face Is a medical and health problem of historic proportions.”
“In fact the BIATF’s Task Group Response and Logistics, is led by our Provincial Health Office and partnered with both government and private medical Institutions. This is the lead sub-group in our COVID-19 response structure as evidenced by Dr. Yul Lopez of the PHO giving daily updates and briefers to the general public in the last 14 months,” the statement stated.
The governor and the BMS president wrote in their joint statement, “The Bohol Provincial Government and the Bohol Medical Society have continued to work tirelessly since last year at the start of the pandemic. With this dynamic cooperation, we have managed to maintain a relative low number of COVID-19 cases in the province compared to the other places in our country. These past victories were not without any disagreement. Being a collegial body, disagreements and debates are common within the BIATF. It is only upon these disagreements and debates that our leaders, both in the medical field and in government, can see the complete picture of our current situation.”
“We understand that the economic/business sector is equally represented in the BIATF. Like the medical sector they are equally passionate with their advocacy, which is to keep the economy afloat and ensure that every Boholano family can provide food in the table to survive.”
The joint statement further says that “Sometimes, the robust discussions end in the old adage ‘we agree to disagree’. But these disagreements have sharpened our recommendations and eventually the policies we Issue in the Province. These disagreements on issues should not be misconstrued or translated into discord and chaos. We will not allow anyone to sabotage this relationship among the sectors within the BIATF whose common goal primarily Is to keep safe our families from COVID-19 while ensuring that our local economy survive,” the statement revealed.”
A continuation of the statement reads, “This crisis is far from over and we are not yet out of the woods. Now is the time that we should be united with the recent spike of COVID-19 cases and the threat of new mutated strands invading our shores. Our Immediate and urgent task is to manage and lower the number of COVID-19 cases and eventually, when the vaccines arrive, ensure massive vaccination rollout in the province led by our medical sector.”
“We hope that we have made clear where we stand on the Issue of those who paint that there is a brewing or actual conflict. There is none. All sectors remain committed, optimistic and united in this cause,” the said statement concluded.
Prior to the release of the joint statement, Yap already clarified in a radio interview on Apr. 28, 2021 over Newsmakers ug Uban Pa Program over DYTR that he sees the doctors as partners in the fight against the Covid pandemic.
He denied during the same interview that he gave orders to anyone to sow intrigue between the provincial government and the doctors’ group.
NO MENTION OF THE SOWER OF INTRIGUES
In the joint statement, there was no mention of the one sowing intrigues between the provincial government and the BMS.
Although there is a social media account that goes by the name of Bohol Monitor (BM), which is known to be supportive of the Yap administration, that came up with a post that caused an uproar among the doctors in Bohol,
The allegation pressed by the BM stated that the doctors earned tons of money from their practice by taking advantage of the pandemic.
The post of the BM has been lashed out by the BMS in a statement and to the extent of calling the administrator of the said Facebook page as a “faceless coward”.
YAP NIXES ACTION ON BM
As far as the governor is concerned, there is no need to launch an investigation against BM, saying that the doctors told him not to be distracted by the issue about the allegations.
The governor, during the regular virtual press conference on May 7, 2021, added that he would abide by the advice of the doctor’s group to focus on working together against the Covid threat.
He said if the doctors being the offended party may file a case as anyone may can have BM investigated.