PMA seeks list of inoculated PSG personnel for monitoring

MANILA, Philippines — Philippine Medical Association (PMA) president Dr. Benito Atienza on Tuesday asked for the list of the members of the Presidential Security Group (PSG) who received COVID-19 vaccines, explaining that the next step should be monitoring for possible reactions from the vaccine.

“Ang mga bakuna, ginawa para sa proteksyon ng ating mga mamamayang para sa COVID-19. Kung nabigyan na sila, ang medical community wala na magagawa. Anong gagawin natin?” said Atienza in a television interview over GMA News TV.

(The vaccines were made to protect the public from COVID-19. If they were given the vaccine, the medical community can’t do anything about it. What are we supposed to do?)

“Sana ibigay sa amin ang  listahan ng mga nabakunahan…at babantayan sila kung ano ang naging reaksyon ng bakuna sa kanila. Kung nabakunahan na sila edi isama na sa phase three ng trial para makita natin ang epekto,” he added.

(I hope they provide us a list of those who were vaccinated so they can be monitored for any reaction from the vaccine. If they were inoculated, might as well add them in phase three [clinical] trial to observe the effects of the vaccine.)

Atienza also urged those who were injected with the COVID-19 vaccine to reach out to them.

“Mas maganda ang gawin natin yung lahat po ng nagpabakuna ay lumantad para malaman namin at matulungan po natin at mabantayan sila… Wala naman pong magpapabakuna kung walang nag-utos, o walang tatanggap. Yan po ay may consent,” the PMA president said.

[Everyone who got the vaccine should show up so we can help and monitor them. No one will get vaccinated if no one ordered it. That had consent.)

The statement came after President Rodrigo Duterte in his address on Saturday claimed that many people in the Philippines have already received the COVID-19 vaccine developed by China’s Sinopharm.

Duterte also detailed that some members of the military were also inoculated with the Sinopharm vaccine.

Meanwhile, Interior and Local Government Secretary Eduardo Año on Tuesday clarified that the soldiers volunteered to be inoculated with the COVID-19 vaccine that was donated “by someone.”

He added that aside from PSG personnel, some Cabinet officials were also vaccinated.

However, the country’s Food and Drug Administration (FDA) explained that it has not yet given any authorization to use any COVID-19 vaccine in the country.

Atienza urged everyone to stop finger-pointing regarding the incident.

“Sana wag na palakihin na ang isyu, wala na sisihan, dapat di tayo magsisihan. Dapat tayo ay magtulungan para sa ikakagaling ng ating mkamamayan para mawala ang agam-agam nila sa bakuna,” he continued.

(The issue should not be blown out of proportion. We should stop finger-pointing and just help each other for the welfare of citizens and assure them about the vaccine.)

/MUF