Duterte willing to get COVID-19 vaccine once approved by FDA for emergency use —Palace

President Rodrigo Duterte is willing to get vaccinated once the COVID-19 vaccines secured emergency use authorization from local regulators, Malacañang said Monday.

The vaccination, however, may not be witnessed by the public even as the Palace underscored the need to boost confidence in vaccines.

“Ginawa mo namang spectacle ang Presidente,” presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said at a press briefing.

“Hindi naman kinakailangan na ipakitang live ‘yan, but in any case it’s the President’s decision. I will not second-guess the President.”

Duterte had earlier said he was willing to have himself injected in public.

“Ako pagdating ng bakuna in public, para walang satsat diyan, in public magpa-injection ako. Ako ‘yung maunang ma-eksperimentuhan. Okay para sa akin,” the President said in a televised address on August 10, a day before Russia gave regulatory approval to its vaccine candidate Sputnik V.

The Philippines is eyeing to acquire vaccines developed by the United States, China, Russia, and the United Kingdom with the government assuring that the vaccination program is still on track to be implemented by next year.

Last week, Duterte allowed the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to issue an emergency use authorization for COVID-19 drugs and vaccines.

An EUA will reduce the processing time for the approval of the vaccines for local use from six months to 21 days, officials had said.—AOL, GMA News