China vaccine set to arrive in Manila on Sunday

MANILA: The Philippines is to receive its first coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine from its Chinese manufacturer on Sunday amid complaints of delays that held up the country’s start of a nationwide inoculation programme to contain the pandemic, a top Malacanang Palace official confirmed on Thursday.

Harry Roque, the presidential spokesman, did not say whether the shipment from Sinovac would consist of the 600,000 doses which the Chinese government announced it would donate to the Philippines.

But with its scheduled arrival on Sunday, Roque noted that this would perk up the government’s ANTI-COVID campaign that has been hampered by the delay in the shipment of vaccines earlier ordered like those from Pfizer due to failure to submit on time documents required by drugmakers.

President Duterte was earlier reported to be interested to lead government officials in welcoming the arrival of the Sinovac vaccine but this was not confirmed by Roque in his online media briefing on Thursday.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Sinovac’s application for the emergency use authorisation (EUA) of the vaccine which paved the way for its official entry into the Philippines. Sinovac was the third vaccine drug manufacturer to be granted the EUA, the first two being Pifzer from the US and Astrazeneca from the United Kingdom.

Meanwhile, Roque said the 600,000 doses of Sinovac would be used to inoculate 50,000 mililtary officers and men as well as 250,000 frontline health workers who are on the government’s top priority list.

Roque explained that Dr. Eric Domingo, the FDA chief, had said the Sinovac would not be used on frontline health workers as well as senior citizens due to the vaccine’s low efficacy rate of 54 per cent based on studies from Brazil.

However, Roque said the medical frontliners would not be forced to take the Sinovac shots if they doubted its efficacy.

“Those who want to get a different brand (can do so) but perhaps, the concession we can give them is that they (can) say ‘no’ without losing their priority on the list,” he pointed out.

Roque also urged Vice President Leni Robredo to join him and some cabinet members to to be among the first ones to get the vaccine jabs to boost public confidence on the government’s inoculation programme.

“If she likes it, the vice president is welcome to join also,” he said taking up the challenge of Robredo who questioned why Duterte was initially planning to keep his vaccination out of the public eye.