The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) will rally behind the soldiers who got the first dibs of an unregistered COVID-19 vaccine if cases against them are filed in court, a military spokesperson revealed Tuesday.
The Bureau of Customs (BOC) revealed that the vaccines administered to select members of the Presidential Security Group (PSG) have no official documents and may have been smuggled, which could prompt authorities to file administrative and civil cases against them.
"We would have to face the music. Kung ang magiging kabayaran ng pagtupad ng kanilang tungkulin ay sila ay kakasuhan (If the price of the fulfillment of their duties is they will be charged), then we may have to defend them in court," said Major General Edgard Arevalo, AFP spokesperson.
BOC spokesperson Philip Vincent Maronilla reportedly said that they did not receive official communication as to the importation of the COVID-19 vaccines -- reportedly manufactured by China’s state-owned Sinopharm -- which were given to Preisdent Duterte's security escorts.
Arevalo, who is also a lawyer, justified the vaccination of the soldeirs as he noted that they "sacrificed" themselves just to test the efficacy of the unregistered vaccine as they perform their duty to protect the safety and well-being of Duterte.
"ng ginawa nila ay bahagi ng tungkulin sa pagtupad sa kanilang responsibilidad (What they did was part of their obligation to perform their responsibilities). Not all members of PSG are vested with that kind of obligation na protektahan ang kanilang Pangulo (to protect the President). Dahil sa pagtupad ng kanilang tungkulin, kailangan nila magkaroon ng bakuna (For them to do their job, they need to have the vaccine)," Arevalo said.
He claimed that there is no law prohibiting the use of a drug, albeit registered or not, if it is voluntary.
"Wala namang isinasaad sa batas na kung ikaw ay boluntaryo na magsubmit sa pagbakuna ay mayroon kang pananagutan. Ang alam kong bawal ay pagtransport, pagbebenta, o pag-advertise ng bakuna (There is no law which states that you are liable if you volunteered to be vaccinated. What I know that is prohibited is the transpory, sale, or advertisement of vaccine)," he said.
But under Section 21 of Republic Act No. 3720 or the amended Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, it is provided that any new drug "should have an authorization from the FDA based on an application containing full reports of investigations."
The law requires a determination by the FDA on "whether or not such drug is safe, efficacious and of good quality for use based on clinical studies, prior to manufacture, sale, importation, exportation, distribution or transfer thereof."
The FDA has yet to approve any COVID-19 vaccine in the country.
According to the Department of Health, the United States' Pfizer is the lone vaccine so far which has applied for an emergency use authorization (EUA) in the Philippines, with their request filed last December 23.
National security?
While some sectors denounced the vaccination of the soldiers, Arevalo claimed that others were thanking them for volunteering and suggested that they should be given awards for "protecting the President."
The military spokesperson emphasized that securing the President's health will always be an issue of national security.
"Mayroon ilang nagsasabi na dapat kilalanin pa natin ang ipinakitang giting at sakripisyo nila because of the inherent risk sa members ng PSG. Kung mayroon itong adverse effect, ang unang tatamaman ay PSG (Some were saying that we should recognize their bravery and sacrifice because of the inherent risk to members of the PSG. If the has an adverse effect, the first ones to suffer are the PSG personnel)," he said.
"Kung tutuusin, sila ang gumawa ng bold move upang sila, kahit magkaroon ng risk, ay willing sila mag-take ng risk if only to protect the President (If you think about it, they made a bold move to willingly take the risk if only to protect the President," he added.
Some sectors and opposition lawmakers earlier assailed the vaccination of the soldiers, saying that aside from circumventing the FDA rules, the government also failed to prioritize the medical frontliners and poor Filipinos who are ought to be the priorities to be given the vaccine.