President Duterte was still assessing if Vice President Leni Robredo's participation will really be helpful to boost the public's confidence in coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccines, Malacañang said.
Presidential Spokesman Harry Roque made the statement after Senator Joel Villanueva has suggested the production of an infomercial featuring the county's top two leaders to encourage Filipinos to receive the COVID-19 shots.
In his press briefing on Monday, Roque said the fate of the Duterte-Robredo infomercial will depend on the President.
"It will depend on the President's assessment if the participation of VP Robredo will be helpful in building vaccine confidence," he said.
According to Roque, a study by the Philippine Survey and Research Center (PSRC) showed that the government's "Mask, Hugas, Iwas" campaign was already effective during the pandemic.
"Yung pinaka-epektibo pong kampanya against COVID is 'Mask, Hugas, Iwas' na sa bandang huli ay nandoon po ang Presidente (The most effective campaign against COVID-19 is the 'Mask, Hugas, Iwas' that feature the President at the end of the video)," he said.
The government's 'Mask, Hugas, Iwas' campaign featured workers from different sectors, reminding the public to practice minimum health standards for the further reopening of the economy.
However, Malacañang was not readily open to the idea of Duterte and Robredo teaming up for an infomercial, saying the Vice President should first be clear about her stand on vaccines after her supposed initial hesitation to Chinese brands-- a claim that Robredo denied.
More than 2.5 million people have so far received the first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine since the country rolled out its vaccination program on March 1.