Malacañang said that the recent study showing a steady decline of vaccine hesitancy among Filipinos was due to the cooperation between the government and the public.
Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nogrlaes made the statement after the recent Social Weather Stations (SWS) showed that only eight percent of Filipinos remain hesitant to get vaccinated against the coronavirus (COVID-19).
In his press briefing on Friday, January 21, Nograles said the low vaccine hesitancy rate was because everyone in the country was doing their part in fighting the pandemic.
"Senyales ito ng matagumpay nating pagtutulungan, tayong lahat (This is a sign of our successful cooperation, all of us)," he said.
"Kayo na nasa media na nagbibigay nang tamang impormasyon and then government making sure na nandiyan iyong supply sa lahat ng regions, and, of course, ang taumbayan (You in the media who are giving the correct information and then the government making sure that there are supplies in all of the regions, and, of course, our fellowmen)," he added.
Nograles assured the public that the government is doing its best to make the vaccines more accessible.
"Ginagawa po natin ang lahat ng hakbang para maging accessible po ang bakuna sa lahat ng areas dito sa ating bansa (We're doing everything to make the vaccines accessible in all areas here in the country)," he said.
On Friday, Malacañang welcomed the result of the recent SWS survey. The survey, conducted from December 12 to 16, 2021, showed that only eight percent of Filipinos continue to refuse to get vaccinated. This is lower compared to the 18 percent in September 2021, 21 percent in June, and 33 percent in May last year.
"We are encouraged by the recent survey that shows a steady decline in vaccine hesitancy and skepticism among our people," he said.
"Malaking bagay din po ang pagkalat ng tamang impormasyon ukol dito kaya nagpapasalamat po tayo sa ating mga kaibigan sa (The spread of correct information about the vaccine is also helpful that's why we are thankful to our friends in the) media for helping us put the word out," he added.
Meanwhile, Nograles urged the public to try to convince any unvaccinated person that they know to get the shot.
"Ang panawagan namin sa lahat is kung may kilala po kayo na hesitant pa, may kaibigan kayo o kamag-anak kayo, let’s take it upon ourselves, initiative na lang po natin na kausapin natin sila, kumbinsihin natin sila (Our appeal to everyone is if you know someone who is still hesitant, whether your friend or your relative, let's take it upon ourselves, let's have the initiative to talk to them and convince them)," he said.
As of January 20, a total of 122,313,496 doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered with 56,835,020 people being fully vaccinated.