黑料社

MANILA, Philippines 鈥� Undersecretary Claire Castro of the Presidential Communications Office PCO) defended on Wednesday Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa for posing for a photo with tobacco industry executives during a turnover ceremony for mobile laboratory clinics and a water station in Malaca帽ang.

At a press briefing on Wednesday, Castro said that merely posing for photos was not illegal.

鈥淚f the DOH [Department of Health] did not accept a donation from the tobacco company, we do not see any violation of any law,鈥� Castro said in Filipino.

鈥淓ven if he participated in a photo opportunity, it does not necessarily mean that he鈥檚 violating any law,鈥� she added.

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Herbosa faced criticism from the Southeast Asia Tobacco Control Alliance (SEATCA) for posing for photographs with some executives of Philip Morris Fortune Tobacco Co.

The company donated mobile laboratory clinics and a water station to the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD)聽 on March 20, and Herbosa was present at the event.

SEATCA Executive Director Dr. Ulysses Dorotheo slammed Herbosa鈥檚 action, saying it undermined his credibility.

鈥淲orse than the hypocrisy of the tobacco industry (donating mobile clinics while causing deaths and diseases) is the lack of integrity of the Secretary of Health attending this event and posing happily for a group photo, trading public health principles and ethics for political convenience, violating CSC-DOH JMC 2010-01,鈥� Dorotheo said in a Facebook post last March 23.

鈥淚 consider Sec. Ted Herbosa a colleague and mentor, but I do not mince my words when I say he has lost all credibility. The Philippines, under this government, does NOT deserve to lead the World Health Assembly. This 3rd Sunday of Lent, let us pray for credible, ethical leadership,鈥� he added.

CSC-DOH JMC 2010-01 prohibits government officials from unnecessary interactions or accepting donations from the tobacco industry.

During Wednesday鈥檚 briefing, Castro maintained that government agencies could accept donations as long as it would not violate any law.

鈥淜ung may pagkakataon po na nagbibgay ng donasyon ang sino man po at ito鈥檡 ikabubuti ng pamahalaan, basta walang violation ng ano mang rule o batas, hindi naman tayo tatanggi sa ano mang tulong,鈥� she said.

鈥淚f there鈥檚 a donation being given and this is for the good of government, as long as there鈥檚 no violation of the law or rules, we will not decline any form of help,鈥� she said.

Aside from Dorotheo, health advocate Dr. Anthony Leachon condemned Herbosa鈥檚 action and called it a 鈥渓apse in judgment.鈥�

鈥淗ealth Secretary Ted Herbosa, the very person entrusted to defend our nation鈥檚 health, stood smiling beside executives of a tobacco company, an industry that has claimed the lives of millions. This is not just a lapse in judgment. This is a deliberate act that spits in the face of every Filipino who has lost a father, a mother, a brother, or a sister to tobacco-related illnesses,鈥� he said in a Facebook post last March 25.

鈥淚t is an insult to every doctor, nurse, and healthcare worker fighting daily against lung cancer, heart disease, and respiratory failure caused by cigarette smoking,鈥� he added.

黑料社 reached out to the DOH for comment but has not received a response as of this writing.