ZAMBOANGA CITY – The top three officials of the Western Mindanao Command (Westmincom) received Friday their first dose of coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) vaccine.
The top three officials were Lt. Gen. Corleto Vinluan, Jr., Westmincom chief; Brig. Gen. Camilo Balutan, deputy commander for operations; and, Brig. Gen. Antonio Nafarrete, deputy commander for administration.
They were inoculated at the Westmincom Gymnasium, the fixed vaccination site of the command.
“As the father of the unit, I believe that by setting as an example, I will be able to convince all the personnel of the command to get the vaccine as well,” Vinluan said after he received his first dose of vaccine.
Capt. Maricor Ajijul, a military staff nurse at Camp Navarro General Hospital (CNGH), administered the vaccine to the top three Westmincom officials.
“Don’t hesitate to get vaccinated, it is not painful and it is safe,” Balutan said.
“We are hopeful that after being administered the first dose of vaccine, everyone else will be encouraged to be vaccinated too when it is already their turn,” Nafarrete said.
Lt. Col. Maria Victoria Mandin, CNGH chief, said that the three top officials of Westmincom were among the 30 uniformed personnel they vaccinated on Friday.
A total of 206 Westmincom personnel, most of which are military healthcare workers, have already been vaccinated since March 9. – Nikolai Gonzalo
