‘Di pwedeng choosy! Duterte: ‘Unacceptable’ for Pinoys to demand Pfizer vax

President Rodrigo Duterte on Wednesday night said it is “unacceptable” for Filipinos to demand to receive the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine.

In a pre-recorded public address, Duterte frowned upon public “selectiveness” for the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine saying there are three other brands in the country’s inventory (Sinovac, AstraZeneca, and Sputnik V).

“Kung gusto ninyo sigurado (If you want) Pfizer and you begin to be selective, hindi ho puwede ‘yan kasi ang Pfizer iisa lang sa dinidistribute natin (that cannot be done because Pfizer is only one of the brands we’re distributing),” he said.

He said if some preferred one vaccine brand over the other, more Filipinos might follow suit and there would not be enough of the said brand for the entire population.

“Kung kayo lang ang gusto, paano yung ibang Pilipino (If you want it, how about the other Filipinos)? If you begin to be selective, the others will begin to be agitated about the potency na pareho naman sana sa iba (even if they’re almost the same as the others). They will also demand Pfizer,” he added.

Duterte said Filipinos should only start to complain if Pfizer is the vaccine brand they were promised to receive but did not.

“Kung sana maraming Pfizer tapos hindi maibigay sa inyo (If we had a lot of Pfizer doses and it was not given to you), you have every reason to complain,” he said.

Citing health experts, he said the best vaccine is “the one that’s available.”

“Huwag kayo mamili ng bakuna (Don’t choose your vaccine), they are all good,” he said.

Since the Covid-19 vaccine brands would not be disclosed, he said it would be a matter of “luck” as to which jab to get.

“Vaccine is vaccine, walang pilian ‘yan (you shouldn’t have to choose). There has to be equality. If by chance you are injected with Pfizer, suwerte ka kung ‘yan talaga ang gusto mo (you’re lucky if that’s the one you prefer),” he added.

Duterte said he found it “unfair” to deliver Pfizer vaccines to select vaccination sites, saying all sites should have different brands.

“It would not be fair to just concentrate the Pfizer vaccine in one place. You might get it but it would be the result of a mixture,” he said.

He also reminded the public to continue observing minimum health standards such as wearing of face masks, face shields, handwashing, and physical distancing even after getting vaccinated.

On May 17, a huge crowd of Parañaque residents flocked to a mall in hopes of getting inoculated with the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine.

More than 4 million doses of Covid-19 vaccine have been administered since the Philippines launched its vaccination drive on March 1. (PNA)

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Source: Latest Politics News Today (Politics.com.ph)