“It is rather difficult to implement half-baked or dubious policies that will likely deter compliance.”
Among these measures is the controversial no vax, no ride policy. Absent a vaccination card to prove having COVID-19 shots, public commuters are barred from taking buses, jeepneys, trains, and other forms of public transportation. Instead, these individuals are forced to either stay at home or to find other means of traveling.
Although the policy seeks good intentions to address the pandemic, we cannot disregard the constitutionally-protected rights of the citizens. Understandably, there is a dilemma in balancing the right of the people, both vaccinated and unvaccinated, to health and the people’s freedom of movement. While it is true that most of the COVID-19 critical cases and deaths recorded in the country are from unvaccinated individuals, they themselves cannot be automatically considered carriers of the virus.