PHILIPPINES: VIAGRA GOES ON SALE NATIONWIDE [-fEw2odLt2c]

PHILIPPINES: VIAGRA GOES ON SALE NATIONWIDE [-fEw2odLt2c]

| 1h 28m 28s | Video has closed captioning.

(29 Oct 1998) Tagalog/Eng/Nat Viagra, the headline grabbing anti-impotency pill, is now on sale in the Philippines. Pfizer, who manufacture the drug, have started delivering to local drugstores in Manila, two weeks after the local Bureau of Food and Drug gave its approval for its sale in the country. Pharmacies in the Philippines have finally begun to receive their stocks of Viagra. The manufacturer Pfizer, started deliveries of the new wonder drug at drugstores in Manila this week. Some stores already began selling the drug on Tuesday. With Viagra becoming the talk of the town, drugstore owners are anticipating a huge demand. Pharmacy owner Bhoyette Vizconde sold five tablets on the first day. SOUNDBITE: (English) "I already hoard (laughs) stocks because I'm really expecting that being the first to have Viagra here in our vicinity, I'm sure a lot of people will come here and inquire or buy Viagra." SUPER CAPTION: Bhoyette Vizconde, Owner of Marcelo's Pharmacy Pharmacy Plus received its first supply early this week. Owner James Sandoval, who owns several stores in the capital, put a few boxes of the pill on the shelf to show clients that the drug is now available. But before the drug was put on sale in his stores, Sandoval issued a memo to all his store managers to ensure that safety precautions are practiced before the drug is dispensed to patients. The B-F-A-D says it is important the pill is only sold to patients who come with a legitimate prescription from their doctors. Each pill comes with a leaflet giving warnings of possible side-effects if the drug is not taken properly. Pfizer warned that the drug should not be taken by people being treated with nitrate-based medication for heart problems. While he expects a huge demand for the drug, Sandoval said Filipino men may be a little shy of asking for the drug themselves. He says the men here will probably not want to admit they need Viagra and so he is arranging a home delivery service to put them out of their misery. SOUNDBITE: (English) "Because maybe at the secrecy of their own home, they can acquire the product because they might be too embarrassed to come forward to admit that they have a sexual problem. Any person that comes forward asking about the product - they're so defensive, they say right away "Hey listen I don't have a problem with this. I'm just inquiring". That goes to tell you how sensitive the issue is." SUPER CAPTION: James Sandoval, Owner of A-B Sandoval Drugstore Dr. Jesus Mendoza is a local doctor who has been checking out the testing of the Viagra drug. SOUNDBITE: (English) "Well, I was pretty excited and wanted to find out whether it was really going to work. Of course, there was some degree of skepticism at first. But when we started seeing back the patients who were on the study, then it was confirmed that my gosh, this works." SUPER CAPTION: Dr. Jesus Mendoza, Urologist In a press conference early this month, Pfizer said the approval from B-F-A-D came after they completed a six-month study of its effects on 500 men from six Asian countries, including the Philippines. The man who discovered Viagra, Dr. Peter Ellis, was in Manila last week and spoke of how his drug differs from the others already available in the market. SOUNDBITE: (English) SUPER CAPTION: Dr. Peter Ellis, Discoverer of Viagra Filipino men have generally relied on traditional balms, herbs, home-made concoctions and Chinese traditional medicine to deal with impotence. An oral drug is something new and it certainly has aroused lots of interest. Find out more about AP Archive: Twitter: Facebook: ​​ Instagram: You can license this story through AP Archive: