Makati City Hall. (Photo by Ryan Leagogo/ INQUIRER.net FILE PHOTO)
The Makati City government has donated a total of 31,000 COVID-19 vaccines to five local governments as part of its sisterhood program.
“We have prioritized our sister-cities and municipalities in offering free COVID vaccines. We aim to help them bounce back from the crisis and contribute to national economic recovery,” Claro Certeza, city administrator of Makati, said on Friday.
On Wednesday, the city released 13,000 doses of AstraZeneca to Batangas province. The city also gave 2,000 doses to the City of Malabon on Thursday.
Earlier this month, the city released 5,000 doses to Urdaneta, Pangasinan; 1,000 doses and syringes to Cuenca, Batangas; and 10,000 doses to Batac, Ilocos Norte.
The donation of Makati’s stockpile of AstraZeneca vaccines came amid the suggestion of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) not to use the said brand in their vaccination in relation to the ongoing “no vaccination, no ride policy” in Metro Manila.
“Because of the large number of vaccines available, I would advise them [local governments in Metro Manila] not to utilize AstraZeneca,” Jonathan Malaya, spokesperson for the DILG, said on Thursday. —Dexter Cabalza