MANILA (Reuters) – Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte defended his government’s decision to buy Chinese coronavirus vaccines, saying they are as good as vaccines developed by Americans and Europeans.
“The Chinese are not lacking in intelligence,” Duterte said in a televised speech early on Wednesday. “The Chinese are brilliant. They would not venture (to produce vaccines) if it were not safe, right and safe.”
Duterte made the remarks as questions were raised about the level of protection the Sinovac Biotech COVID-19 experimental vaccine can provide, after researchers in Brazil released late-stage clinical data showing lower efficacy than initially announced.
At least one Philippine senator, Francis Pangilinan, has asked the government to cancel the purchase of the Sinovac vaccine, one of seven that is lining up, as it plans to start immunization next month.
Manila blocked 25 million doses of the Sinovac vaccine, with the first 50,000 scheduled to arrive in February.
Duterte, who sought closer ties with Beijing, said earlier that he preferred his country to supply COVID-19 vaccines from China or Russia.
Carlito Galvez, a former general in charge of the vaccination buying effort, said the government had also signed supply agreements with Novavax, Moderna, AstraZeneca, Pfizer, Johnson & Johnson and the Gamaleya Institute in Russia for 137 million doses in total .
That adds up to 40 million doses that the Philippines hopes to receive through the World Health Organization’s COVAX facility in the first quarter, Galvez said.
The Philippines has one of the largest coronavirus cases in Asia, but is behind its regional peers in obtaining vaccines, with which it hopes to inoculate 70 million people this year, or two-thirds of its population.
An opinion poll showed on Thursday that less than a third of Filipinos are willing to be vaccinated against the coronavirus, as many have expressed concerns about safety. Philippine regulators have yet to approve a COVID-19 vaccine.
(Reporting by Karen Lema; Editing by Peter Graff)