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Expert rebuffs Roque on vaccine remark: We deserve to be choosy

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<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2021/news/01/12/roque-leachon.jpg"/></figure></div><p>MANILA - A public health expert on Tuesday slammed presidential spokesperson Harry Roque&#x27;s remarks as &quot;unfair&quot; that Filipinos cannot pick which brand of vaccine they would receive for free against COVID-19.</p><p>&quot;That&#x27;s a very unfair statement coming from the spokesperson because to me it is enshrined in the Constitution that health is a basic right and it is about wellness,&quot; Dr. Tony Leachon told ANC&#x27;s<br/>Matters of Fact&quot;.</p><p>&quot;We deserve to be choosy because we need to find the right vaccine for us based on efficacy and safety.&quot;</p><p>Leachon, former adviser of the national coronavirus task force, reminded President Rodrigo Duterte&#x27;s spokesman that the government works for the people and not the other way around.</p><p>&quot;The government works for the people. I think the government should actually follow that particular aspect of looking for the right vaccine,&quot; he said.</p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/01/07/21/nearly-half-of-pinoys-opt-to-skip-covid-19-vaccine-pulse-asia">Nearly half of Pinoys opt to skip COVID-19 vaccine: Pulse Asia</a></li></ul><p>A Pulse Asia survey conducted last year showed that nearly half or 47 percent of Filipinos would not get themselves vaccinated against COVID-19 due to safety concern.</p><p>&quot;And if there&#x27;s safety concern, you need to heed the call of the customer, as well as the people, that you need to provide the right [and] the efficacious vaccine,&quot; Leachon said.</p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/01/11/21/hindi-pwede-pihikan-filipinos-cant-choose-which-covid-19-vaccine-theyll-get-from-govt-palace">&#x27;Hindi pwede pihikan&#x27;: Filipinos can&#x27;t choose which COVID-19 vaccine they&#x27;ll get from gov&#x27;t - Palace</a></li></ul><p>On Monday, Roque said Filipinos cannot choose the brand of COVID-19 vaccine that they would get from the national government.</p><p>&quot;Totoo po, meron tayong lahat na karapatan para sa mabuting kalusugan pero hindi naman po puwede na pihikan dahil napakaraming Pilipino na dapat turukan,&quot; he had said.</p><p>(It is true [that] we all have a right to good health but one cannot be choosy because there are many Filipinos who need to be vaccinated.)</p><p>To date, the Philippine government has secured vaccine supply deals with China&#x27;s Sinovac, British pharmaceutical firm AstraZeneca and the Serum Institute of India.</p><div><strong>RELATED VIDEO</strong></div><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/JxrcajdWqy0?enablejsapi=1"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more in <a href="//www.iwantv.com.ph/">iWantv</a> or <a href="//tfc.tv/">TFC.tv</a></div>

<p>A public health expert on Tuesday slammed presidential spokesperson Harry Roque's remarks as "unfair" that Filipinos couldn't choose what brand of vaccine they would receive for free against COVID-19.</p><p> </p>

A public health expert on Tuesday slammed presidential spokesperson Harry Roque's remarks as "unfair" that Filipinos couldn't choose what brand of vaccine they would receive for free against COVID-19.