Manila, Philippines – On Monday, former Health Secretary
Enrique Ona blamed his successor, the Department of Health (DOH) secretary
during Aquino’s administration, Janette Garin, over the nightmare caused by
Dengvaxia dengue vaccine.
Senate Blue Ribbon continued the investigation of the controversial
procurement of P3.5 billion to purchase Dengavaxia vaccine fromFrench
pharmaceutical Sanofi Pasteur.
Ona reiterated that
the leadership that took over the position he left on December 2014 “is solely
responsible for all the decisions”
Ona also denied that statement of former president Benigno
Aquino III that he was part of the meeting with the executives of Sanofi in
Beijing, China in December, 2014.
According to Ona, it was Garin, who was then under his
watch, who took over the DOH Secretary position from being the Undersecretary.
It was also during Garin’s time that the Dengavaxia
anti-Dengue vaccine was administered to around 830, 000 public school students.
DOH records said that Dengvaxia was implemented and launched
in Central Luzon, Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, and Quezon),
Metro Manila, and Cebu.
“I had high hopes like many others that the vaccine being
developed would eventually control this mosquito-borne disease that affects
more than a hundred thousand Filipinos or patients annually and scares so many
of our foreign visitors and tourists,” Ona told the Blue ribbon committee chair, Richard Gordon.
“In light of this Sanofi Pasteur’s advisory on the use of
anti-dengue vaccine Dengvaxia, the leadership that took over the DOH after I
left on December 20, 2014 is solely responsible for all the decisions that have
resulted in what was becoming to be a major health nightmare in the country,”
Ona explained.
Ona said, had he been the secretary then, he would not have
recommended implementing Dengvaxia.
“Dapat po this should have not been implemented the way it
was done. Meaning, targeting almost a million children because the basis for
the issues that were being raised was still a big question mark,” he said.
“I would have not agreed in that extent. I would not have
gone into that,” Ona further stressed.
When Gordon further verifies if it was true that he was with
Aquino’s meeting with Sanofi ni Beijing, the former DOH chief denied that he
was.
“I looked over my passport because of this insinuation that
I was with the President in Beijing (in November). Wala po. I was not (there),”
Ona pointed out.
Source: Manila Bulletin
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