Unvaccinated individuals have found an ally in Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte over a proposal to restrict them from entering the city and availing of some government services.
Earlier, Duterte announced that she was not keen on imposing restrictions for unvaccinated people in Davao City similar to those now being implemented in Metro Manila following a surge of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases.
“Since they are given freedom, why should they suffer from restrictions.”
“I am pro-vaccination and boosters. [But] in this case, I cannot agree with the exclusion or restriction of the unvaccinated because they were given the freedom to choose. Since they are given freedom, why should they suffer from restrictions,” the lady mayor said in a radio interview.
She, however, left the discretion to business owners regarding setting rules on the entry of unvaccinated individuals into their respective establishments.
Rey Pardillo, a public school teacher who opted not to get vaccinated due to his pre-existing ailments, welcomed Duterte’s pronouncement.
Pardillo said restrictions on unvaccinated individuals would be like depriving them of their right to avail of basic services.
“We are all Filipinos and we have the right and the freedom to choose.”
“We are all Filipinos and we have the right and the freedom to choose. There is nothing in the Philippine Constitution that stipulates that it is mandatory,” he said.
Duterte said the city government cannot implement entry restrictions for unvaccinated individuals.
“For me as city mayor, the government did not make the vaccination mandatory for all. Therefore, people are given a choice of whether they will be vaccinated or not,” she stressed.
