Senate President Vicente Sotto III on Tuesday advised health officials to be careful with their announcements regarding the coronavirus pandemic and let the Department of Health (DOH) secretary speak on "very critical" issues.
Sotto gave anew DOH officials an unsolicited advice as he said that their pronouncements could be misinterpreted by the public and could worsen aversion about the government's vaccination program.
"An unsolicited advice: Perhaps it is best that when the Department of Health or officials in the Department of Health make statements, it's best that you clear it with the Secretary of Health," he said before the Senate's approval of the bill expediting the procurement of COVID-19 vaccines.
"Kung minsan 'yong mga nasasabi natin, ng ibang mga bureaus under the Department of Health ay hindi nakakatulong, eh (Because sometimes, our statements, or of other bureaus under the DOH do not help). It is misunderstood, it is misinterpreted," he added.
"So it's best that if there are any pronouncements, and it is very critical issue...it should be the Secretary of Health that should make the pronouncements. Medyo iwasan natin yong bitaw-bitaw sa media ng mga salita na hindi nakakatulong sa kinalalagyan natin (We should prevent giving statements to the media that do not help our situation right now)," he further said.
Sotto issued the statements after the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said on Monday that Sinovac's vaccines are not recommended for use of health workers and senior citizens.
Senators found the FDA's advice confusing as it already granted the Chinese drugmaker an emergency use authorization (EUA) for its product. The FDA later clarified that health workers may still opt to receive Sinovac's vaccines, and the exception only applies to those who are exposed to and are treating COVID-19 patients.
"Those kind of statements could be misinterpreted and misunderstood. The buck stops with the Sec of Health. Unless it is Sec. Duque who makes such announcements, the other officials should be very careful with their pronouncements," Sotto told reporters in a message later.
During a Senate hearing in May last year, Duque had announced that the Philippines was "actually" experiencing the second wave of the COVID-19 spread after the curve had supposedly flattened in January. He retracted this statement as officials in the executive department disputed his declaration.
And during a pre-State of the Nation Address forum in July, he said the Philippines has "successfully flattened the curve". He also quickly clarified his statement to mean that "we bent the curve".