HEALTH Secretary Teodoro Herbosa yesterday affirmed his position against vaping and smoking, as well as the refusal of the Department of Health (DOH) to receive donations from the tobacco industry.
The statement comes amid a series of criticisms against Herbosa and his participation in the official turnover of four mobile clinics to the Philippine government by a tobacco company in ceremonies held in Malacañang.
In a brief statement after a meeting with HealthJustice Philippines, the DOH said: “He (Herbosa) reaffirmed the Department of Health’s position against tobacco and vape products.”
The health chief also renewed his commitment to the World Health Organization-Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO-FCTC), an international health treaty that the Philippines signed in 2003 and ratified in 2005.
“The DOH has not accepted, and continues to refuse and reject all donations by the tobacco industry, whether to its officials or the agency or its units,” said the DOH.
Herbosa’s presence at the event in Malacanang was seen as a violation of the WHO-FCTC and the DOH – Civil Service Commission (CSC) Joint Memorandum Circular (JMC) 2010-01.
It was also seen as a betrayal of his commitment and mandate as the Secretary of Health.
In a separate statement, HealthJustice Philippines said it welcomes the opportunity to hold a dialogue with the DOH.
“We called attention to recent incidents of tobacco industry donations to government agencies and emphasized the importance of protecting public health policies from industry influence, highlighting the need for strong and consistent implementation of FCTC,” said HealthJustice.
The anti-smoking group said it will continuously work to protect public health and uphold the principles of the FCTC.
“We look forward to concrete actions that uphold the integrity of our shared public health commitments,” said HealthJustice.
