Vaccination of soldiers vs. COVID-19 mandatory —AFP spox

The Armed Forces of the Philippines on Thursday said vaccination of its personnel against COVID-19 will be mandatory.

At a virtual press briefing, AFP spokesperson Major General Edgard Arevalo said soldiers may select their vaccine brand but cannot refuse to be inoculated. 

"To get inoculated or not is not an option to the members of the Armed Forces of the Philippines. It is a duty," Arevalo said, adding the mandatory vaccination for soldiers was ordered by AFP chief Lieutenant General Cirilito Sobejana.

"At the most, the exercise of option will be the option as to what brand of vaccine they will be availing of but the cost of which will not be paid by the Armed Forces of the Philippines," he added.

Those who would refuse to be vaccinated, Arevalo said, will be sanctioned under military rules.

"Puwedeng ma-punish sila under Article of War 105, which is commanding officers disciplinary powers," he said.

Noting the role the military plays in addressing the pandemic, Arevalo said the mandatory vaccination is to ensure that AFP personnel "will not complicate" the COVID-19 situation in the country while performing their duty.

"At the end of the day, all or every AFP personnel and their immediate dependents must be vaccinated," Arevalo said, citing Sobejana.

Sinovac's vaccine has already been granted emergency use authorization by the Philippine Food and Drugs Administration, along with vaccines from Pfizer and AstraZeneca, meaning they can already be used in the country once available.

On Tuesday, the Department of National Defense said its employees as well as members of the military will receive the 100,000 doses of Sinovac Biotech's vaccines to be donated by China.

“The DND is set to begin its inoculation drive for its employees upon the delivery of the 100,000 doses donated to the DND by China through Chinese Defense Minister General Wei Fenghe,” it said.

The vaccines will also be administered to all the employees and military personnel assigned to DND’s civilian bureaus like the Office of Civil Defense, Government Arsenal, National Defense College of the Philippines and the Philippine Veterans Affairs Office, as well as the civilian employees of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).

Their family members are also eligible to receive the vaccines, according to the DND.

Arevalo said soldiers who want to be inoculated with other brands of COVID-19 vaccine other than Sinovac will have to pay for it themselves.

"Kung gusto nila ng ibang brand ng bakuna na ituturok sa kanila bukod o hindi doon sa bakuna na inilaan para sa AFP personnel, partikular ang Sinovac, puwede po niyang piliin ang brand na gusto niya pero siya po ang magbabayad ng halaga ng bakuna na iyon," he said. 

However, Arevalo urged  AFP members to use available COVID-19 vaccines like the one from Sinovac, which are expected to arrive on Sunday, if no other brands are readily available in the country. —KBK/RSJ, GMA News