On the eve of the 15-day enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) in Metro Manila, the shipment of one million doses of the Sinovac vaccine landed at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 2 in Pasay City on Thursday night.

Vaccination czar Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr. said the delivery, flown in by Philippine Airlines flight PR 359 at about 6 p.m., will augment the request of the National Capital Region (NCR) for an additional four million doses during the ECQ from Aug. 6 to 20.

“Kaya po natin punan ‘to sa ating (This will fill up our) stocks,” Galvez said in an interview.

“Ino-organize po natin na maging mas maayos ang pagbabakuna. ‘Wag po tayo magmadali at di po kayo mauubusan ng bakuna dahil maraming parating na bakuna (We are making the vaccination process more organized. More vaccines will arrive),” he added.

Galvez said supplies will likewise be increased in other areas, like Laguna, Bulacan, Cavite, Rizal, Metro Davao, Metro Cebu, Cagayan de Oro City, Iloilo, Aklan, Apayao, and parts of Ilocos region.

Laguna, Iloilo City, and Cagayan de Oro will also be under ECQ, according to an announcement by Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque Jr., while Cavite, Lucena City, Rizal, and Iloilo Province will be under modified ECQ.

As of August 4, a total of 22,488,705 Covid-19 vaccine doses have been administered nationwide since rollout began in March, with 10,282,152 of vaccinees already with two shots.

The day before, the country recorded its highest daily vaccination rate at 702,013 jabs.

Within this month, 22.7 million vaccines doses are expected, both procured by the government and secured through foreign donations. (PNA)