MANILA — Philippines does not favor any drug makers of the much-awaited COVID-19 vaccine, Malacañang said Tuesday, after a doctor questioned the government's bid for 25 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine from China's Sinovac.

Other vaccine candidates like that of Pfizer will be shipped out later than Sinovac, in the second or third quarter of 2021, said Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque.

"Kung makakakuha tayo ng Pfizer, AstraZeneca… at saka Moderna and Johnson & Johnson, well and good po," he said in an online press briefing.

"Pero ngayon po, the market is really demand-driven and we will get what we can procure. Wala po tayong favorites," he added.

(If we can get from Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson, that's well and good. But for now, the market is really demand-driven and we will get what we can procure. We don't have favorites.)

China is "one of the most cooperative" countries in ongoing vaccine negotiations, said Budget Undersecretary Lloyd Christopher Lao.

"They are making commitments and they are responding positively sa atin (to us). Thats why Sinovac is one of the most active vaccine vaccine suppliers that’s negotiating with our country because there is the imprimatur of China itself," he said in the same briefing.

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Dr. Tony Leachon, a former adviser of the Inter-Agency Task Force against COVID-19, earlier questioned the Philippines' negotiations for the Sinovac vaccine, saying, it was "worrisome that the government is still prioritizing the vaccines for which there are not enough safety and efficacy data."

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The Philippines will only approve vaccines that are safe and effective, said Roque.

Officials can also negotiate with Sinopharm, another Chinese drug maker, to bring down the price of its COVID-19 vaccine, which is the most expensive, said Roque.

Price may not be a deal-breaker, Roque added, as long as the drug is "safe and effective."

"Sa tingin ko po limited na iyong aspect ng price dahil emergency situation po tayo ngayon, at limited talaga mga vaccine," he added.

(Provided it is safe and effective, I think the aspect of price is limited because we are in an emergency situation and the vaccine is really limited.)

"Whatever is the safest and most effective, and available, that we will get. The cost and the price will be taken care of by DOF (Department of Finance)," Lao added.

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