Gov't open to Dengvaxia use? Acosta says Panelo was 'misquoted'



Public Attorney's Office (PAO) chief lawyer Persida Acosta believes presidential spokesperson Salvador Panelo was misquoted when he reportedly said the government may reconsider the use of controversial anti-dengue vaccine Dengvaxia.
Interviewed on Unang Balita on Friday, Acosta noted that the proposal came from former Health secretary and now Iloilo Representative Janette Garin, a respondent in the number of cases filed by PAO involving deaths blamed on the vaccine.
"Alam ko na-misquote lang si Secretary Panelo 'yan dahil ang nagsalita at nagrekomenda ay nasasakdal, si Secretary Garin. Nasasakdal yan. Nakapiyansa lang," Acosta said.
Because she is a respondent, Garin is not "credible," Acosta said.
"Hindi siya credible na mag-suggest dahil siya ay isang akusado at respondent sa mga Dengvaxia dead victims cases," she said, adding Garin's suggestion may be part of her legal strategy.
"Depensa niya yan kasi dahil pag nabalik [ang Dengvaxia] sasabihin niya sa korte, 'O, nabalik'," Acosta said.
The PAO chief however admitted that she has yet to talk with Panelo, saying she just based her statement on "excerpts" she read on the papers.
"Nabasa ko yung excerpts. Sabi niya open to anything ang Palasyo basta ikabubuti pero pag-aaralan yan. Hindi sinabing ibalik. Mini-misquote siya na ibalik na," she said.
On Wednesday, Panelo said Malacañang is open to all options to curb the rise of dengue cases in the country in response to Garin's recent proposal.
The Dengvaxia controversy started in November 2017 after its manufacturer Sanofi Pasteur announced that the vaccine may lead to more severe symptoms of dengue for those who have never been infected by the virus prior to vaccination.
This prompted the Department of Health (DOH) to halt its dengue immunization program.
Several criminal complaints had since been filed by PAO with the Department of Justice for deaths allegedly linked to Dengvaxia.
Acosta maintained that Dengvaxia, based on the findings of PAO's experts, should not be used as vaccine against dengue as it already caused the deaths of 142 dengue patients, most of them children. —KBK, GMA News

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