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MANILA, Philippines – Senate President Vicente Sotto III sees nothing wrong with some members of the military being inoculated with unapproved COVID-19 vaccines, saying there is no law that prohibits a person from receiving an unauthorized vaccine.
“I don’t think there is anything wrong with that. There is no law that says that you cannot take any drug or vaccine that the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) has not approved, ”Sotto said in a message to reporters when asked for comment.
“Latest [I] remember, there is even no law against suicide. So what’s the fuss? I don `t believe [the government] paid for the vaccines they used. I’m sure they were given and administered free of charge, ”he added.
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In his televised address over the weekend, President Rodrigo Duterte revealed that many people in the Philippines have already received the COVID-19 vaccine developed by China’s Sinopharm, even as regulators have yet to approve the use of any vaccine.
On Monday, the Secretary of the Interior, Eduardo Año, confirmed that some members of the Cabinet, as well as the Presidential Security Group (PSG), have been inoculated with a vaccine against COVID-19.
The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) also issued a confirmation that PSG members were the first among military personnel to be vaccinated against COVID-19.
“As the unit has the primary task of protecting and securing the country’s highest official, PSG will have to ensure that the president is safe from all threats, including COVID-19,” the spokesman for the AFP, Major General Edgar Arévalo. .
The FDA has yet to grant an Emergency Use Authorization (USA) to a COVID-19 candidate vaccine. The US pharmaceutical company Pfizer has so far been the only company to apply for a USU in the Philippines.
FDA Director General Eric Domingo in a television interview confirmed that the agency has been receiving reports of Filipinos receiving the COVID-19 vaccine from China.
Domingo said it would be a “personal choice” if an individual chooses to be inoculated with an unregistered vaccine.
“There is nothing we can do about it, it is a personal choice. But it is illegal to import an unregistered drug, distribute it, and for a doctor or medical practitioner or any health personnel to administer drugs without a license in the country, “he said.
He promised that the agency will go after distributors of “illegal and unregistered” COVID-19 vaccines.
/ MUF
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