President Duterte on getting Sinopharm jab: “I made it as a personal request”
After receiving his first dose of Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine, President Rodrigo Duterte made a public apology and shared that he made it as his “personal request”.
During his Talk to the People briefing on Wednesday night, President Duterte apologized for receiving a COVID-19 vaccine that has not been approved by the country’s Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
President Duterte admitted that Sinopharm — a COVID-19 vaccine developed by Beijing Biological Products Institute under state-owned China National Biotec Group (CNBG) — has not been tested by the Food and Drug Administration in the Philippines.
According to President Duterte, at least 55 health experts reached out to him and said that Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine was “deleterious or dangerous for use.”
President Duterte argued that Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine had been used in Indonesia and Brazil, and that Chinese officials had themselves vaccinated with Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine.
But since it will draw further criticisms, the President decided to ask Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Huang Xilian to withdraw some 1,000 Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine doses that Beijing donated.
“Ang Sinopharm maybe tomorrow or the following day wala na ‘yan. I made it as a personal request,” President Duterte said.
The said vaccine has not received approval from the country’s Food and Drug Administration, although it issued a “compassionate use permit” for the sake of the Presidential Security Group (PSG).
According to a report on Gulf News, those who received the first dose of the Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine will have to wait for 21 days (3 weeks) before receiving the second dose of the said vaccine.
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