Vaccine czar Carlito Galvez, Deputy Chief Implementer for COVID-19 task force Vince Dizon, and Health Secretary Francisco Duque are set to be vaccinated by Chinese vaccine Sinovac on Monday to boost the public confidence in vaccines.
In a report on GMA News, the secretaries were persuaded to get vaccinated to encourage the public to get vaccinated.
Research team OCTA showed that only 19% of Filipinos are willing to be vaccinated against COVID-19.
The vaccinations are set to take place at the Lung Center of the Philippines in Quezon City while Dizon would be inoculated at the Dr. Jose N. Rodriguez Memorial Hospital in Caloocan City.
RELATED STORY: PH to receive over 1 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine this week
“For Sinovac, some people have said that they do not want to be injected because of the different percentage of efficacy but we have seen many who have been vaccinated by Sinovac including some foreign leaders…President Duterte and I are willing to get vaccinated in public so that the public can trust the vaccine,” Senator Bong Go said.
“Vaccination is our only way out of this but it’s important that health workers have a choice on whether they want to be vaccinated with Sinovac or not. Nobody will be required to take the vaccine. This will be voluntary…While vaccinating, we should all still follow health protocols,” he added.
President Rodrigo Duterte also ordered the rollout of the COVID-19 vaccination program in the first week of March.
“Inatasan ni Pangulo Duterte na sa susunod na linggo umpisahan na agad ang pagtuturok ng mga bakuna, especially sa mga priority natin, sa mga frontliners, indigent na senior citizens para unti-unti na tayong makabalik sa normal nating pamumuhay,” Go said.
“First week of March darating rin ang unang batch ng bakuna sa Visayas at Mindanao. Pagkarating nito, susunod na araw pwede na mag-inoculate,” Go added.
READ ON: Duterte orders first round of COVID-19 vaccination on first week of March
Around 600,000 doses of the Sinovac vaccine will be delivered on Sunday which will be personally welcomed by Duterte.
525,600 doses of AstraZeneca vaccines will also arrive on Monday from the World Health Organization’s COVAX facility.
Go said that Duterte has ordered that vaccines will be stored in strategic places.
“Of course, sa Visayas, sa mga naka-ready na pasilidad doon sa hospital sa Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center (sa Cebu City). Sa Davao City, sa Southern Philippines Medical Center dahil nakapaghanda na rin sila doon…Ang gusto ni Pangulo distributed [ang mga bakuna] all over the country,” Go said. (TDT)
