Former President Benigno Aquino III could be held accountable in the controversial P3 billion dengue immunization program, House committee on good government and public accountability chair Rep. Johnny Pimentel said on Monday.
In a press briefing, Pimentel said the five committee hearings on the Dengvaxia controversy have shown that it was Aquino who approved or authorized the realignment of the savings which was used to fund the program.
“If you’ll base it on the principle of command responsibility, it was President Aquino who approved or authorized the realignment. Because you cannot realign funds or savings from different allotment plans. If you realign savings it should be on same allotment plan. Pero ang sabi if the President authorized it pwede raw,” the lawmaker explained.
Pimentel added that the process of procurement for the vaccines was rushed, and that French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi Pasteur, Dengvaxia’s manufacturer, was ultimately accountable for the mess.
“We are consistent that there will be some officials that will be held accountable. It was very clear during our hearings ang lumalabas minadali talaga itong pagbili ng Dengvaxia,” he said.
Aquino had already dismissed Pimentel’s accusation that the procurement process for the anti-dengue vaccine was rushed.
Senate blue ribbon committee chair Sen. Richard Gordon is also convinced that Aquino should face criminal charges for “hastening” the program.
READ: Aquino should be charged for ‘hastening’ Dengvaxia procurement – Gordon
READ: Aquino, Duterte administrations liable in Dengvaxia mess – Gordon
For his part, Aquino said that at the time, he was faced by the urgency of the country’s problem on dengue.
READ: Aquino on Dengvaxia: ‘people’s health cannot be held in abeyance by elections’
Pimentel said that in 2016, the Philippines ranked 7th in the list of countries with high prevalence of dengue.
But the lawmaker stressed that these conclusions were only based on his own opinion and may not necessarily reflect the committee report which they are now currently drafting.
Health Secretary Francisco Duque III had ordered the suspension of the vaccination program after Sanofi Pasteur bared in November 2017 that Dengvaxia could worsen dengue symptoms if administered to people who had not been previously infected by the virus.
The Philippines rolled out the anti-dengue vaccine in 2016 under former Health Secretary Janette Garin, and it was continued under the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte.
Dengvaxia was administered to more than 830,000 children in areas with high incidences of dengue. /muf