Cebu City Mayor Edgardo Labella welcomes the decision to have Cebu City as one of the areas chosen for clinical vaccine trials of COVID-19. | Reuters (file photo)
CEBU CITY, Philippines — Cebu City Mayor Edgardo Labella welcomed the announcement from the national government that they would be conducting clinical trials for the coronavirus vaccine here in Cebu.
“Nalipay ko ug dawaton nato na kay makahatag og dakong tabang ug kita mahimong usa sa unang kahigayonan makasuway sa vaccine,” Labella told reporters in a press briefing on Friday, September 11.
(I am happy and we welcome it since it will be of big help considering that we are selected to be among the first to try the vaccine.)
On Thursday, Department of Science and Technology (DOST) Secretary Fortunato dela Peña said they had identified at least eight zones in the country where clinical trials of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine would be held.
Six of these zones are found in Metro Manila, one in Calabarzon and one in Cebu.
READ MORE: ‘Zone’ in Cebu chosen for COVID vaccine clinical trial
While the country’s coronavirus experts were still determining the specific areas where the experiments would be done, Labella said he believed that other local governments in Cebu, aside from Cebu City, would benefit from it.
“I think it’s the entire Cebu island, not only Cebu City (but regardless) nalipay ko (I am happy) Cebu was chosen,” said Labella.
According to Peña, areas with high number of confirmed COVID-19 cases are most likely to be chosen as zones for clinical trials.
In Cebu island, data from the Department of Health in Central Visayas (DOH – 7) showed that Cebu City had the highest number of confirmed COVID-19 cases, with 9,768 as of September 10.
Of this number, only 387 remained as ‘active cases’ which pertained to patients still infected with SARS-CoV-2.
Next to Cebu City was Cebu province which tallied a total of 4,870 confirmed COVID-19 cases as of September 10, of which 588 remained as active cases.
The entire Cebu island has been placed under the most relaxed form of community quarantine since September 1. /dbs