MANILA – Vice President Leni Robredo urged the government to be transparent in its commitment to prioritizing vaccination against coronavirus disease (COVID-19).
“There is no vaccine available yet, that is what adds to the concern of our countrymen when it will come, but there is a special vaccine,” Robredo said in his weekly radio program.
The vice president said this after the Presidential Security Group (PSG) admitted that some of their uniformed personnel had been vaccinated.
This is despite the government’s promise that healthcare workers and poor senior citizens and communities will be given the COVID-19 vaccine.
According to Robredo, the incident only exacerbated Filipinos’ fear of vaccination.
“We demand your transparency. I hope there is no cover-up because that is how you feel now… This is what we do not want to happen because in a time when there is a pandemic, at a time when people need your trust in the effectiveness of vaccination, we do not need such controversy. ”
Until now, the PSG leadership has been silent on who donated the vaccine supply from the Chinese pharmaceutical company Sinopharm.
“How did your vaccine get in? The claim, Ka Ely, donated. So the question is, who donated? That has not been answered yet. That is the most basic question. ”
The vice president stressed the importance of restoring public confidence in the vaccine, which was shattered by the Dengavaxia controversy.
This is also the way the program prepared for COVID-19 vaccination will be successful.
VP Leni asked why despite the public’s recognition of the president’s decision to include uniformed personnel in the prioritization, they were still unable to follow the set list.
“We agree that your uniformed personnel should really be prioritized, especially those around the President, but why not? Why did you not follow your protocols, why did you violate the law, why did you not follow your prioritization made by the IATF, the DOH, our vaccine czar, why did you not follow that? ”
Robredo worries about the possibility that many will also try to smuggle the vaccine as long as they have the money to buy it.
If this happens, the mandate of the regulatory authorities that determine whether the drugs or vaccines will be used by the public will be useless.
“So we have a law. So we have regulations for better, more organized. We make sure nothing is put in jeopardy. ”
“Your overall message is like saying that it’s okay to smuggle. It’s okay to smuggle vaccines so when I have the means to enter it is okay because our leaders did that. That, I think, Ka Ely, is the most dangerous there. ”
Robredo agreed with the Senate’s proposed investigation into the incident. He also believes that those involved in breaking the law should be held accountable.
According to the Food and Drug Administration, the use of new health products, such as vaccines, is dangerous because it is uncertain whether they are safe.
The Office of the Vice President had earlier said that the COVID-19 vaccine had not been vaccinated against Robredo, and no one was trying to approach the vice president to offer the vaccine.
