Navotas thumbs down Sinovac jab
Before they can be vaccinated, there will be a consultation to make sure that they are not being forced against their will
Navotas City Mayor Toby Tiangco stressed his constituents are free to choose which vaccine to receive, as he expressed disagreement over the government’s position that the public cannot choose their vaccines.
In an interview, the Navotas mayor admitted he was not open to acquiring the Sinovac vaccine.
“As for me, I’m sorry, but I’m a bit scared of Sinovac,” Tiangco said.
A Palace official earlier said the public cannot choose the brand of vaccine that will be used on them since vaccination “cannot be mandatory.”
“In the first place, you cannot force people to have themselves vaccinated if they do not want to. That’s why the form they fill up requires their consent. And again, before they can be vaccinated, there will be a consultation to make sure that they are not being forced against their will,” Tiangco said.
He added that if the pubic will not be allowed to choose the brand of vaccine they want, it might defeat the purpose of the drive.
“We will all be at the losing end. We must ensure that more people get vaccinated,” he stressed.
The Navotas local government conducted an online survey of the vaccine preference of its constituents specifically to know the brands they will purchase.
“In Navotas, very few expressed preference for Sinovac. So, we no longer bought any,” Tiangco shared.
To date, the city has expressed interest in purchasing vaccines only from AstraZeneca, Pfizer and Moderna.