The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) has urged local government units (LGUs) in Metro Manila to issue ordinances punishing unauthorized injections of the COVID-19 vaccine as a booster shot.
“It is hereby resolved that the Metro Manila Council hereby urges local government units of Metro Manila to issue executive orders and or enact ordinances therein penalizing all persons who are found to be responsible for the unauthorized inoculation utilizing government-procured COVID-19 vaccines as booster shots” said in a resolution.
This follows the report that a fully vaccinated person in Mandaluyong City was given a booster shot in Quezon City.
The National Task Force (NTF) Against COVID-19 will also hold accountable the alleged vaccine hoppers or those who have registered for vaccination in various LGUs to get more than 2 doses.
“Booster shots are forbidden pa. Napakaliit pa ng porsyento ng population na fully vaccinated,” said NTF Against COVID-19 chief implementer Carlito Galvez.
“We are asking our people to be patient. We should be morally obliged to wait for our turn. When we are already finished, let other people finish their turn,” said Galvez.
So far, up to 230,00 doses have been injected daily in Metro Manila, which is under enhanced community quarantine due to the kick-off of COVID-19 cases.
469,200 additional doses of Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccines purchased by the government and the private sector arrived this Sunday.
Metro Manila LGUs urged to punish those injecting booster shots
Of that number, 150,000 doses will go to the private sector.
To date, more than 15 million individuals have been vaccinated with their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine in the country.
About 12.4 million have been fully vaccinated, or equivalent to 17.5 percent of the target population to be vaccinated.
About 20 to 30 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines are expected to arrive in the Philippines this August and September.
Meanwhile, a total of 14,749 new cases of COVID-19 were recorded in the Philippines in conjunction with the detection of the first case of Lambda variant in the country, the Department of Health (DOH) said this Sunday.
The more than 14,700 new cases are the second-highest extra cases in the country since the pandemic began. In addition, there were 3 laboratories that failed to submit data.
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