MANILA – Malacañang on Thursday defended Public Attorney’s Office (PAO) chief Persida Rueda-Acosta as the latter drew fire for supposedly eroding public trust on vaccines due to her pronouncements against dengue vaccine Dengvaxia.
Acosta has taken the cudgels for parents whose children died supposedly after receiving Dengvaxia shots.
PAO, representing the parents of the deceased children, has filed charges against former and current health officials, as well as the Dengvaxia manufacturer Sanofi.
Health secretary Francisco Duque III, one of those charged by PAO, urged Acosta to stop making “baseless” allegations, saying her remarks have caused “serious damage” to Filipinos’ vaccine confidence as seen in the rise in measles cases.
Presidential Spokesman Salvador Panelo said as a lawyer, he understands where Acosta is coming from.
“You know, the PAO chief, as a lawyer, is defending or pursuing a theory that favors her clients. In other words, she is pursuing an advocacy. I cannot be blaming her for that,” Panelo said in a Palace press briefing.
He added: “As far as she is concerned, she is doing her job of protecting the parents of [children who] she perceived to be dying by reason of Dengvaxia.”
Panelo said Acosta did not politicize the Dengvaxia issue, arguing she may be “impassioned with her advocacy with respect to her clients, the families of the victims, that you cannot blame her.”
Panelo, nonetheless, admitted that the fear surrounding Dengvaxia has eroded public trust on other vaccines long proven to be effective.
“Even if we do that as lawyers, we are confronted with the realities that our position may affect and impact negatively on the general public,” he said.
He added: “If she feels her advocacy has affected the people into not believing on immunization, including immunization from other illnesses, then she should do something about it.”
Acosta said she should not be blamed for the low immunization turnout, as it was not her office’s responsibility to promote vaccination. (With ABS-CBN News/PN)
