President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has recognized a local non-governmental organization for its work in promoting vaccination and immunization to safeguard the country’s health.
President Marcos, in a speech read by former Health Undersecretary Dr. Enrique A. Tayag, said the Philippine Foundation for Vaccination (PVF) “has done what many promise and few deliver, not for the spotlight but for the long, hard, and necessary work that strengthens our country.”
“In an age when faith in institutions frays easily, to persist in this work is to declare, without spectacle but with resolve, that public health is not an event—it is a discipline, practiced daily, until it resembles something lasting: a nation not only protected, but prepared to believe in itself again,” President Marcos said.
“In remote sitios and health centers, in humid classrooms turned into clinics, the PFV has shown up, not for spectacle, but for service,” he said.
Former Health Undersecretary Tayag is now PVF adviser and overall chair of the PVF 25th anniversary committee. He is a former PVF president.
The President’s speech was read on Thursday evening during the PVF’s 25th anniversary celebrations held in Manila. The anniversary theme was “Celebrating 25 years of PFV, Silver Linings: Hitting Immunization Goals with a Silver Bullet.”
The World Health Organization describes the PVF as “a non-stock, non-profit organization to protect and advocate for the promotion of vaccination as essential to disease prevention, especially among infants and children.”
The Chief Executive said that vaccination is not merely about protecting the body from harm, “but to act on behalf of a life still unfolding— the child whose fever will never come, and the parent who can return to work without fear.”
The president said the PFV has delivered not simply immunization but assurance and “a quiet infrastructure of trust, built dose by dose, dialogue by dialogue, across islands and doubt.”
“This milestone proves that persistence can outlast noise, outwit indifference, and quietly redraw the map,” he added.
The President likewise urged the public to continue strengthening the foundation of Bagong Pilipinas by serving, protecting, and upholding the dignity of every Filipino.
During the event, several individuals, labelled as “Vaccine Heroes Awardees,” were honored for their vaccination advocacy. They were Dr. Benito Atienza, Dr. Remedios F. Coronel, Dr. Alicia B. Tamesis, late journalist Sheila Crisostomo (received by her mother Luzviminda Crisostomo on her behalf), Dr. Eduardo Gatchalian, former Health Sec. Enrique T. Ona Jr., former Health Sec. Francisco T. Duque III, and Dr. Jonathan D.A. Flavier. | PND
