(Eagle News) — Public Attoryney’s Office (PAO) chief Atty. Persida Acosta traded barbs with Iloilo Rep. and former Health Secretary Janet Garin amid the debate on whether it is wise to use Dengvaxia vaccine to prevent more dengue cases.
Acosta said that Garin has no credibility to recommend the return of Dengvaxia to the markets as she himself had been charged for her role in implementing its mass vaccination among school children.
“Ginagawa naman niyang walang utak ang mga Pilipino,” she said.
Acosta said that Garin’s recommendation on the return of Dengvaxia was a ploy so that she can allegedly use the vaccine’s return as argument in court.
“Parang chess. Para pag naipabalik nya, depensa nga niya sa husgado, nakabalik, safe ang Dengvaxia,” she said.
Garin, on the other hand, claimed Acosta and other anti-Dengvaxia groups present themselves as public health experts while allegedly threatening the true health experts with cases if they would say something good about Dengvaxia.
“The anti-vaccine group is cloaking themselves, labeling themselves as public health experts and experts of universal health care. Hindi po totoo yon,” she said in a forum.
“Ang mga totoong eksperto tahimik na nagtatrabaho, You can inivite them here, subalit palaging tinatakot ni Acosta ng kaso,” she said.
Garin pointed out that the World Health Organization (WHO) has already included Dengvaxia in its Essential Medicines List and List of Essential Diagnostics this year. She said Acosta should respect the doctors who are pushing for the return of Dengvaxia into the Philippine market amid the growing number of dengue cases.
But Acosta maintained that the Department of Health’s (DOH) ban on Dengvaxia should stay since putting it back in the market would be very dangerous.
She said Garin should just focus on making laws now that she is a congresswoman.
“Dra. Garin, manahimik ka na lang sa isyu na yan. Gumawa ka na lang ng batas. Sa Dengvaxia, nabuko na kayo,” the PAO chief rebutted.
(with a report from Eden Santos, Eagle News Service)
