Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso warned the capital’s residents on Wednesday against receiving unauthorized COVID-19 vaccines that are reportedly being smuggled into the city.
At the sidelines of the Rizal Day celebration in Luneta Park, Domagoso said there is no guarantee that the smuggled vaccines are effective.
“The money that you’ll spend to get a vaccine in advance won’t give you assurance. It’s dangerous. You’ll just waste your money,” Domagoso said.
The mayor also said health workers who would be caught administering unauthorized vaccines would face charges.
Domagoso said the Manila city government and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have been conducting raids in search of reported illegal vaccination hubs in the city.
The FDA has yet to authorize the use of any COVID-19 vaccine in the country.
Asked to comment on the recent issue of several Presidential Security Group (PSG) members getting inoculated against COVID-19, Domagoso said: “All I can say is, we in the City of Manila, we are certain about our rules.”
“These things are not allowed. And it should not be emulated, or it should not be copied by any other agency in the national government or local government,” Domagoso added.
Domagoso said he understands the PSG’s motives behind the vaccination but added that violations cannot be ignored.
Government officials earlier revealed that some of President Rodrigo Duterte’s security personnel were given vaccines supposedly donated by Chinese state-owned firm Sinopharm.