THE Office of the Ombudsman has filed graft and technical malversation charges before the Sandiganbayan against former Health Secretary now Iloilo Rep. Janette Garin and other Department of health (DOH) officials for the alleged illegal diversion of P3.556 billion from the Miscellaneous Personnel Benefits Fund to the procurement of Dengvaxia vaccines in 2015.
Other than Garin, also named in the graft case were former DOH Undersecretary Gerardo Bayugo, Undersecretary Kenneth Hartigan-Go, OIC director Joyce Ducusin, and former Philippine Children’s Medical Center (PCMC) executive director Julius Lecciones. Hartigan-Go, Ducusin, and Lecciones were also named her co-defendants in the technical malversation charge.
Prosecutors recommended that bail bonds for each accused be set at P90,000 for graft and P18,000 for technical malversation. Garin expressed relief that the issue has been brought in court saying it is a chance to end the controversy for good.
The lawmaker stressed that the purchase of vaccines was not tainted by corruption but was colored by misinformation. However, she pointed out that Dengvaxia remains on the World Health Organization’s (WHO) list of important vaccines.
“Our decisions and actions were all science-based. Globally, the Philippines got the cheapest price. The whole world is continuously using the vaccine. It is listed in WHO’s EML or Essential Medicines List which means all countries are mandated to make it available to its people at all times,” Garin pointed out.
While she lamented that the controversy caused some people to mistrust vaccines and put themselves at risk by refusing inoculation, the former Health Secretary said it is a challenge that comes with the job.
“The nuance between pro-vaccine and anti-vaxxers is part of the challenges of doctors and vaccinologists like us. It’s a risk we take as part of our job to save lives thru vaccination,” she said.
Garin contested allegations that the funds used for dengue vaccine were intended for other purposes saying the Special Allotment Release Order (SARO) issued by the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) specified that the sum was for the procurement of vaccines.
“The SARO is very clear. It was for dengue vaccine for Regions 3, 4A and NCR. We just followed the DBM-issued SARO. It would be better to thresh all of these in court so we can put an end to it,” she added. Included in the lineup of prosecution witnesses were lawyers Glenn Chong of the Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption (VACC) and Eligio Mallari of the Vanguard of the Philippines Constitution Inc. and doctors Anthony Leachon and Clarito Cairo Jr.
