Opposition Senators demanded a full and transparent explanation from the government regarding the vaccination of officials and Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) soldiers, including members of the Presidential Security Group (PSG). 

The vaccines reportedly came from the Chinese pharmaceutical company SinoPharmaceuticals (Sinopharm) and were administered despite the lack of authority from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). 

Senator Risa Hontiveros questioned the “unauthorized” vaccination of top officials and soldiers, saying a black market for unregistered COVID-19 vaccines "should not be tolerated in any way."

“This was unsafe and illegal. These vaccines were clearly smuggled through a black market, and even worse, seem to (have been) sanctioned by the government," she added. 

She said the National Taskforce against COVID-19 must provide a transparency report regarding the said illegal vaccination activity, which she said is "crucial" for preventing a waste of funds or even corruption.

"Ang taumbayan ba ang nagbayad para sa iligal na vaccination na ito? (Is it taxpayers who paid for this illegal vaccination?)This is another whiff of corruption,” she also asked. 

The senator lamented that the move was a major risk to the public’s health since it is possible that the vaccine is unsafe, and might not even be effective in the first place.

"They might become confident, freely walking COVID superspreaders. Nilagay din sa panganib ang mga sundalo natin (They put our soldiers in danger)," she said.

"The transparency report should reflect the decisions of the NTF every step of the way,” she said. 

“The vaccination plan clearly says that the first step is to locally approve the vaccines, which with Sinopharm we didn’t. On top of this, we promised that we would vaccinate our healthcare workers, who put their lives on the line everyday, first, which we also didn’t. Ano na ba ang nangyayari sa plano natin? (What happened to our plans?), ” she asked. 

She reminded the government that safety should be first priority in the procurement of COVID vaccines and the report would be a major declaration of accountability to the public.

“If the vaccine is unsafe, who will be held accountable? There are major life-threatening consequences in any lapse in this mass vaccination program. Kung may magkulang o gumawa ng kalokohan, dapat managot, (If somebody is negligent or if someone did something bad, they must be held accountable),” she said. 

Senator Leila de Lima  slammed the reported illegal vaccination, saying those who were inoculated with unregistered vaccines should disclose who gave the go-signal to proceed without first securing clearance from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

"What a mess! Talaga palang may mga nabakunahan na (It's true that there have been people who have been vaccinated even without yet an official clearance from FDA which was completely kept in the dark," De Lima said in a statement.

De Lima said that apart from the members of the Armed Forces of the Philippine, the Presidential Security Group (PSG) and the Cabinet officials should come clean and disclosed who approved the unauthorized COVID-19 vaccination.

"Aside from soldiers, PSG members and Cabinet members, they should tell us if there are other civilian officials clandestinely given an unauthorized advance vaccination," she said.

"Who are they? Why were these individuals prioritized? What vaccines were used? Under what deal? Who exactly gave the imprimatur to what is patently a transgression of law and public policy?" she asked.

"This is a serious matter. There must be full disclosure of facts. And accountability," she said.

Last Saturday, President Duterte revealed that "almost all soldiers" have been inoculated with China-made Sinopharm. The AFP also confirmed that members of the PSG were the first ones within the military to be inoculated "to protect" the President.

Interior Secretary Eduardo Año had also revealed in an interview that several Cabinet members have also been vaccinated.

Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon earlier said the distribution and administration of unauthorized COVID vaccines without proper clearance from the FDA is illegal and punishable by law.

"As government officials, our priority is the safety of our people. That is the very purpose of FDA authorization—to make sure that the vaccines that we administer to our people are safe, effective and of certain quality,” Drilon said in a separate statement.

“We, the leaders, should only obtain, approve and administer vaccines to our people, which we ourselves, will use,” he emphasized.