DAVAO City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio, who disclosed that she is already fully vaccinated, urged those who have not yet been vaccinated to take the opportunity of getting the anti-Covid-19 vaccine.
“Kung delikado pa po nang [Covid-19] vaccines, hagbay na po ko namatay sa kadaghan sa mga nag-ampo nga mamatay ko. So fully vaccinated po ako but hindi pa po ako namamatay hanggang ngayon (If the Covid-19 vaccines were that dangerous, I would have died a long time ago with the number of people who wish me dead. So I am fully vaccinated but I am not dead),” Duterte-Carpio said on Monday, September 6, in an interview on 87.5 FM Davao City Disaster Radio.
The mayor did not disclose the exact date of her vaccination but she said, “Dugay nako nagpabakuna (I have been vaccinated for quite some time now.)”
She also did not disclose the vaccine brand administered to her.
The mayor made the statement after receiving reports of some individuals still hesitating to get the Covid-19 vaccine due to misinformation being disseminated by other media practitioners and in social media.
Based on the data she received, Duterte-Carpio said out of the 46 deaths recorded from August 29 to September 4, 42 of them were unvaccinated.
“So importante po nga pag naa namo’y schedule or opportunity na matagaan og schedule para magpabakuna. I-grab na po nato na nga chance na and opportunity nga magpabakuna ta ug di na po ta mupili og brand sa bakuna because importante sa pagkakaron ang vaccinated (It is important to get your schedule for the vaccination. Take the chance and opportunity to be vaccinated and do not be choosy with the brand because what is important is you are vaccinated),” she said.
The mayor urged the public to be wary of anything they read online.
“Before ta mutuo dayon sa mga tao nga gasulti nga delikado ang pagpabakuna, dapat siguro magpresenta sila og tao nga nadaot gyud tungod sa iyang Covid-19 vaccination or tao nga namatay gyud tungod kay… na nabakunahan siya og Covid-19 or mangita ta og tao ikapresenta nato as an example nga nahimong zombie or monster tungod sa ilang Covid-19 (Before we believe people who claim that vaccines are harmful, they should at least present someone who had been harmed by the Covid-19 vaccine or someone who died days after being vaccinated, or they need to present an example of someone who turned into zombie or monster after being vaccinated),” she said.
She added getting vaccinated does not fully guarantee that they will not infected by the virus. But she said it would prevent them from becoming patients with severe and critical symptoms that would require hospitalization.
The mayor said that as of Tuesday, September 7, none of the medical workers, who were first in line in the vaccination prioritization turned into a “zombie.”
With this, the mayor challenged those who are spreading misinformation on the vaccination program of the City Government to a debate, of which she will allot one radio program.
“You bring me one doctor who turned into a zombie, na (that is) fully vaccinated,” Duterte-Carpio said.
The mayor said she has statistics and data coming from the hospitals to support her claims, while those opposing the vaccine only have unverified claims and data to back up the conspiracies surrounding the vaccines.
