Garin, 4 others to face graft raps over Dengvaxia

MANILA, Philippines — A review panel created by Ombudsman Samuel Martires has recommended the filing of graft and technical malversation charges against former Department of Health (DOH) chief Janette Garin and four other former and incumbent ranking officials in connection with the allegedly anomalous P3.5-billion dengue mass vaccination program of the Aquino administration.

In a 152-page resolution, a copy of which was obtained by The STAR, the ombudsman’s review panel said “there is probable cause” to charge Garin with violation of Section 3 (e) of Republic Act 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices.

Also recommended to be charged with graft were DOH officer-in-charge Director Maria Joyce Ducusin, Undersecretary Gerardo Bayugo and former undersecretary Kenneth Hartigan-Go, as well as Philippine Children’s Medical Center (PCMC) executive director Julius Lecciones.

Section 3 (e) of RA 3019 prohibits public officials from giving unwarranted benefit, advantage or preference to a private party or from causing any party, including the government, undue injury.

The panel said the totality of testimonial and documentary evidence at hand showed that “there was intentional participation among the concerned public officials” to commit the crime.

“Taken altogether, each and every one of them contributed and participated to the realization of common purposes i.e. to introduce, realign the budget, procure and use Dengvaxia vaccines for the mass vaccination of a large number of public school students, placing them at considerable health risks as there were still pending issues on the safety and efficacy of the Dengvaxia vaccines, thereby causing undue injury to the government in billions of public funds,” the ombudsman panel’s resolution read.

On the other hand, the panel dismissed the charges of violation of Republic Act 9184 or the Government Procurement Reform Act and criminal negligence under Article 365 of the Revised Penal Code against Garin and the other respondents “for lack of probable cause and insufficiency of evidence.”

The resolution was prepared by ombudsman review panel chair Rex Reynaldo Sandoval with the assistance of panel members Emerita Francia, Luisa Rabang, Riza Fernandez-Jugo and Rodil Casal II. Martires approved the resolution on July 19.

Martires created the panel through Office Order No. P-0018, Series of 2023 to review the Department of Justice (DOJ) Panel of State Prosecutor’s resolution dated June 30, 2021 recommending the filing of graft charges against Garin and other officials of the DOH as well as against former Department of Budget and Management chief Florencio Abad.

The DOJ prosecutors dismissed the complaint against former president Benigno Aquino III due to his death on June 24, 2021.

In a phone interview with The STAR, Martires said the ombudsman’s own review panel only found sufficient evidence to charge Garin, Ducusin, Bayugo, Hartigan-Go and Lecciones although there were many other individuals originally named as respondents in the case, among them Aquino, Abad and several doctors under the DOH.

“To be fair, even excluding the death of former President Aquino, we did not find any evidence of his supposed involvement in the [Dengvaxia] anomaly,” Martires said.

Martires said the recommended cases against Garin, Ducusin, Bayugo, Hartigan-Go and Lecciones are now “up for filing” with the Sandiganbayan by the Ombudsman’s Office of the Special Prosecutor.