After the recent fiasco on the unapproved and most likely the Department of Health‘s (DoH) choice of vaccine—Sinovac as administered to the Presidential Security Group (PSG), the Filipino Netizens expressed their dismay toward the matter.
Comedian and Eat Bulaga! long-time mainstay and host Joey de Leon took to twitter his opinion toward the people claiming that there was no consultation on the brand of vaccine that the government might prefer to purchase. They felt they were not given the right to choose what kind of vaccine.
In his tweet, he reiterated Dr. Maria Rosario Vergeire’s statement on what vaccine the people must have to get themselves immune to the COVID-19 virus. He mentioned that Sinovac is Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved. Thus, like any other vaccine brands, it is guaranteed to be safe and effective.
Ang pinakamaayos na pagpapaliwanag tungkol sa bakuna para sa akin ay nagmumula kay Dr. Maria Rosario Vergeire. TANDAAN: kahit anong brand pa ng bakuna yan basta inaprubahan ng FDA o Food & Drug Administration, equal footing o pare-pareho nang effective at safe yan!
— Joey de Leon (@AngPoetNyo) January 13, 2021
Filipinos got disappointed after knowing that LGUs chose AstraZeneca vaccine versus DOH’s preference–the Sinovac vaccine.
On Tuesday, January 12Also, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque, stated that Filipinos should not be “picky” as to what vaccine they are to get.
It was clearly explained by Health Undersecretary Vergeire that Sinovac will be on “equal footing” with other vaccines once it was given emergency use authorization (EUA) by the FDA.
“Basta nabigyan na ng EUA ng FDA, equal footing na po ‘yan. Pare-pareho na po silang safe at epektibo. Hindi po kailangan mamili.”
She also reminded people to accept whatever vaccine comes first since the government’s objective is to provide vaccines to Filipinos, and to help alleviate the COVID-19 situation in the country.
“Kaya kung ano pong maunang bakuna na dumating, atin pong tanggapin ‘yan. Tandaan po natin, ang objective po ng gobyerno ay mabigyan tayo ng bakuna para maibsan ang ating sitwasyon.”
She also noted that getting a vaccine is one of the most effective measures in reducing the number of COVID-19 cases.
