Iloilo – Former health secretary and current Iloilo Representative Janette Garin is confident that the graft and technical malversation charges against her regarding the Dengvaxia dengue vaccine will be dismissed.
According to a news release by the Philippines News Agency, Garin, along with former Department of Health (DOH) officials and a medical center chief, is accused of unlawfully reallocating PHP3.5 billion in government funds for the purchase of the vaccine.
Garin stated that she welcomes the case as an "opportunity to finally put an end to the longstanding issue." She maintains that her actions were backed by hard science and sound discretion. "As we maintain our clear conscience and readiness to face the issues that confront us, we are confident that our sound exercise of discretion, which is backed by hard science, will disprove the allegations in the complaint," she said.
In addition to Garin, the Ombudsman has filed charges against former DOH undersecretary Gerardo Bayugo, former DOH acting director Maria Joyce Ducusin, former DOH undersecretary Kenneth Hartigan-Go, and former Philippine Children's Medical Center chief Julius Lecciones. The officials are accused of causing the "realignment of government fund" for the Dengvaxia procurement, which was not part of the DOH's expanded program for immunization (EPI).
The Ombudsman also noted that the Dengvaxia vaccines were not listed in Volume 1 of the Philippine National Drug Formulary, which is in violation of Executive Order 49, series of 1993, and other related administrative orders and issuances. The procurement of the vaccine from pharmaceutical company Sanofi Pasteur occurred in 2016, and more than 800,000 school children were vaccinated. Sanofi later announced that Dengvaxia may cause adverse effects in those who have not previously been infected with dengue.
Garin, who noted the risks that come with advocating for vaccine development, stated, "We firmly believe in the principles of justice and due process, which our legal system upholds. With this, we fully trust that our innocence will be duly proven, and the truth will come out in due time."