MANILA, Philippines — Two former health secretaries have expressed their support for Vice President Leni Robredo’s presidential bid and came aboard her team as advisors on public health matters, in what is seen as a boost to her campaign hinged on eradicating the COVID-19 scourge in the country.
On Monday, Former Health Secretaries Manuel Dayrit and Esperanza Cabral, who served under the Cabinets of former Presidents Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and Benigno Aquino III, respectively, said they were “only too happy” to join Robredo’s team in crafting a good health agenda.
Both Dayrit and Cabral noted that the country had “moved too slow” in closing down its borders at the onset of the pandemic. “[The government] somewhat dilly-dallied. That was the biggest miscalculation,” Dayrit said.