Authorities are now hunting down those behind the flocking of people to various vaccination sites in Metro Manila on the eve of the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ), Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Undersecretary and spokesperson Jonathan Malaya said Friday.

In a Laging Handa briefing, Malaya said they are looking at the possibility that the act is meant to sabotage the government’s vaccination drive against the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19).

“Ang takot namin, huwag naman sana, may nag-organisa nitong pangyayaring ito para i-sabotahe ang vaccination program hindi lamang ng pamahalaan kundi pati na ng mga (Our fear is, God forbid, somebody organized this event to sabotage the vaccination program not only of the government but also that of the) local government units. We are taking this seriously, as this is a threat not only to public health but also to national security),” he added.

Citing the initial report from the city government, Malaya said even Manila Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” himself was surprised over the incident where even those coming from nearby provinces were among those who flocked to the vaccination sites.

“Kung totoo pong organisado ito, maawa naman po sila sa aming bansa. Nakakasira sila sa ating bansa dahil maaaring maging superspreader event itong pangyayari na ito (If this is indeed an organized act, we call on them to have mercy on our country. They are destroying our country because it can be a super spreader event),” he said.

Malaya said the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and the Philippine National Police (PNP) are also on the lookout against those who spread disinformation claiming that unvaccinated individuals will not be allowed to leave their homes or get financial aid from the government.

This, he said, is the reason for the overcrowding in vaccination sites in the region, particularly in Manila and Las Piñas.

This resulted in a breach of safe physical distancing and other minimum public health standards, hence, the cancelation of vaccination activities.

“We are warning you, hinahanap kayo ngayon ng NBI at PNP (The NBI and the PNP are now looking for you). We will (exert) our utmost efforts para mahuli kayo (to catch you,” he said.

Meanwhile, Malaya said the distribution of the cash aid for qualified recipients in Metro Manila will possibly start next week.

He noted that the LGUs should be given more time to make the necessary logistical adjustments for the cash aid distribution.

“Ang LGUs sila po talaga ang magdi-distribute niyan (ayuda) (The LGUs are really in charge of the aid distribution). So they would need to organize their distribution teams, they would need to set up the distribution points. Yun pong kanilang listahan (of recipients) kailangang ayusin nila so kailangan nilang i-mobilize yung kanilang disbursing officers and most importantly yung cash (Their lists need to be prepared so they need to mobilize their disbursing officers and most importantly the cash),’’ Malaya said.

Malaya explained that the funds may have been in the bank but there may be instances where there are insufficient “paper bills” for a particular day that would cause delays in the aid distribution.

On Friday, the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) released a total of PHP10.894 billion to cover the financial assistance of ECQ-affected individuals and households in Metro Manila.

After this, Malaya said that they will wait for the local budget circular from the DBM to be followed by the issuance of guidelines in the distribution process by the DILG, Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), and the Department of National Defense (DND).

These guidelines are similar to the one used in the distribution of financial aid when the NCR Plus was placed under ECQ earlier this year.

The final list of beneficiaries will be provided by the LGUs, with the aid to be distributed either through manual payout, money remittance centers, or house-to-house distribution.

Affected low-income individuals and families are expected to receive PHP1,000 per person and a maximum of PHP4,000 per household, to ensure that food and other non-food requirements are met despite the ECQ.