BY MINKA TIANGCO
Manila Mayor Isko Moreno said the city’s “economic drivers,” including market vendors and public transportation drivers, will be the first to get Sinovac COVID-19 jabs should it be the first vaccine to arrive in the capital city.
This after the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said CoronaVac, the COVID-19 vaccine from Chinese biopharmaceutical company Sinovac, is not recommended for health workers and senior citizens due to its variating level of efficacy.
Sinovac was issued Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) by FDA on Monday.
Moreno said vaccinating market vendors and public transportation drivers will help boost consumer confidence and the economy.
“[Aside from health], mayroon tayong isang nadi-disgrasya, which is the economy,” he said in a live broadcast on TikTok on Monday.
“We really have to address the economy… kailangan i-balance ‘yung kabuhayan at ‘yung buhay ng tao,” he added.
The Manila mayor stressed that the vaccines will be administered free of charge and will not be mandatory.
He also said that he is willing to be the first person in the city to be inoculated with CoronaVac to ease the public worries. (Minka Tiangco)
