MANILA — Vice President Leni Robredo on Friday said rewards would work better than punishment in relation to calls to make COVID-19 vaccination mandatory.

Vaccine "czar" Carlito Galvez Jr. and Presidential Adviser for Entrepreneurship Joey Concepcion this week said they were in favor of mandatory COVID-19 shots.

"Sa akin, ‘pag sinabi mong mandatory, gusto ba nung sabihin may mga penalities iyong ayaw magpa-vaccinate? Iyong sa akin, parati akong andoon sa instead of penalizing, mas mabuting incentivizing," Robredo said on the proposal.

(For me, when you say mandatory, does that mean there will be penalties for those who do not want to get vaccinated? For me, instead of penalizing, incentivizing is always better.)

Robredo cited as an example her office's mobile COVID-19 testing in communities where transmission is high.

She said many refused to get swabbed even though they were exposed to a patient or had developed symptoms because they feared failing to earn money for their families if they testes positive and went on quarantine.

"‘Pag inisip mo na kaagad ang penalizing, parang feeling mo kasalanan nila na ayaw without really understanding where they are coming from," she said.

(If you think immediately of penalizing, you'll feel it is their fault without really understanding where they are coming from.)

She said incentives solved this problem when her office offered a sack of rice for people get swabbed, and 2 weeks' worth of food supplies for their family if they tested positive.

"Mas doon ako sa putting up incentives kasi para sa akin mas malalim iyong pinaghuhugutan ng pagsunod ng tao, rather than sumusunod sila kasi takot silang makulong o sumusunod sila kasi ayaw nilang makasuhan," Robredo said.

"Para sa akin, mas empowering dapat lagi iyong solution," she continued.

(I lean more on putting up incentives because for me, that will be a deeper motivation, rather than fear of being jailed or facing charges if they do not obey. For me, the solution should always be more empowering.)