Manila Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso will not be among the first to get inoculated for the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) as he will stick with the recommendation of the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) to prioritize medical front-liners.

“I want to be vaccinated as well but I am not qualified yet because the first batch is only for the medical front-liners. We will wait for the IATF’s go signal for us mayors to be vaccinated” he said in an interview during the ceremonial vaccination in Manila held at Sta. Ana Hospital onTuesday.

Domagoso praised national government officials who consistently promote the benefits of vaccination versus Covid-19 and help Manila’s vaccine registry gather more participants.

Vice Mayor Honey Lacuna-Pangan, a doctor by profession, was among the first to get vaccinated with the China’s Sinovac Covid-19 vaccine together with some 200 medical workers.

“Around 5,000 medical frontliners in Manila from the Manila Health Department and six other hospitals, I am encouraging you to get the protection now. The best protection is the one we already have,” Domagoso said.

Lacuna-Pangan also urged her fellow front liners to do the same to protect their loved ones.

“Many are waiting for the vaccines but as frontliners, we are given top priority so grab the opportunity to protect yourselves and your family,” she added.

The Mayor also urged the critics to stop using the vaccines donated by China as political propaganda.

“They are enraging and threatening the public through the fake news that they spread, let’s set aside politics for now. Let us all heal as one,” he said.