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COVID-19 vaccines came from AFP chain of command, says Army chief


Certain units of the Army have been given COVID-19 vaccines that came from the Armed Forces of the Philippines chain of command headed by President Rodrigo Duterte, its chief said on Monday.

In a radio interview, Philippine Army chief Lieutenant General Cirilito Sobejana said he could not disclose the military units of these personnel. He added that those vaccinated include officials and non-commissioned officers. 

"Well, of course our President is our Commander-in-Chief sa Armed Forces of the Philippines, ano... I should say that it's from the chain of command of the Armed Forces," Sobejana said, adding he could not disclose the unit of the concerned soldiers.

"Mayroon naman po sigurong paliwanag 'yung mga doktor na nagbigay ng bakuna sa kanila at hindi po sila nag-alinlangan," he added. 

He said he was able to talk to those personnel and he noted that he sees no adverse effects following the vaccination. 

"Okay naman po at nakakausap ko, wala naman pong negative effect na napapansin," Sobejana said.

The Army chief said the number of personnel vaccinated was not big. He could not say if the vaccine came from the Chinese pharmaceutical company Sinopharm.

"I could not disclose kasi honestly hindi ko alam kung anong klaseng vaccine but I know may vaccine na naibigay," Sobejana said.

Asked if he was already vaccinated, Sobejana answered that he is not yet vaccinated. 

Armed Forces spokesman Major General Edgard Arevalo said the information about the vaccinated soldiers still needs to be validated. In a statement that seemed to contradict Sobejana, he said the vaccination was "not AFP-sanctioned."

Duterte was the one who disclosed over the weekend that some soldiers were already vaccinated using Sinopharm.  —KG/KBK, GMA News

 

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