A health worker demonstrates as Marikina Mayor Marcy Teodoro explains the preparation process during a simulation exercise for the administration of Pfizer vaccination at the newly opened Pfizer Vaccination facility at the Marikina Sports Center on May 19, 2021. Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News
MANILA — Malacañang denied on Friday accusations that government could be favoring some areas in the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines.
Palace spokesman Harry Roque made the statement after reports that several vaccination sites in Davao City, President Rodrigo Duterte's hometown, would get coronavirus vaccines from US-based Pfizer-BioNTech, which is favored by many Filipinos.
Pfizer shots go to Metro Manila, Metro Cebu and Metro Davao because they have ultra-cold storage facilities the vaccines requires, Roque said.
"Wala pong preferential treatment ‘yan. Realidad lang po na talagang Pfizer was made for first world conditions," he said in a televised public briefing.
(There is no preferential treatment. It's just a reality that Pfizer was made for first world conditions.)
A recent Social Weather Stations survey revealed that US is the most preferred source of COVID-19 vaccines. Pfizer and China's Sinovac Biotech are the most popular brands, the same poll found.
Duterte this month banned local authorities from announcing the brand of COVID-19 vaccines available at an inoculation center, after a huge crowd flocked to a site offering Pfizer jabs.
The Philippines has received some 193,000 Pfizer doses.
In total, authorities have taken delivery of about 8.279 million COVID-19 shots. Authorities have administered at least 4.495 million of these doses nationwide, as of May 25.
Video courtesy of PTV
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