JV Ejercito: Senate probe finds Aquino, Abad, Garin liable

Sen. JV Ejercito. INQUIRER.NET PHOTO/CATHY MIRANDA

The chronology of events in the Dengvaxia controversy showed that three officials, including former President Benigno Aquino III, rushed an immunization program using a vaccine that was later found to be harmful to some people.

This was the conclusion of the Senate investigation of the controversy, Sen. JV Ejercito said at a weekly forum in the Senate on Thursday.

“We respect that [Aquino] is a former President, but this has become a health issue. The most unforgivable thing here is the negligence and the carelessness by which the program was implemented,” he said.

Aquino’s budget secretary, Florencio Abad, was held responsible for using government savings, instead of a congressional appropriation, to purchase the vaccines.

Former Health Secretary Janette Garin, meanwhile, was held accountable for the process of acquiring the vaccine, noting that experts had advised against a mass vaccination.

The Senate probe was conducted by the committee on health, chaired by Ejercito, and the Blue Ribbon committee, chaired by Sen. Richard Gordon.

During the hearing, dengue expert Dr. Scott Halstead testified that it could not be concluded that the vaccine was the cause of death of some children. —CHRISTINE O. AVENDAÑO