Justice Secretary Menardo I. Guevarra on Thursday, Jan. 20, said he has reminded Public Attorney’s Office (PAO) Chief Persida V. Rueda Acosta to comply with government workplace regulations for unvaccinated personnel.
Under the rules issued by the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF), Guevarra said:
“Personnel reporting for onsite work should be vaccinated. If unvaccinated but must report for onsite work, the requirement is to at least undergo RT-PCR (reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction) or antigen testing once every two weeks.”
Acosta had earlier admitted she has not been vaccinated against COVID-19 due to health concerns and because of her age.
With her admission, Guevarra said he immediately reminded Acosta of the regulations.
“I already advised PAO Chief Acosta to comply with existing government regulations regarding onsite work as it relates to unvaccinated personnel, and to ensure a COVID-safe working environment in her agency without sacrificing efficiency,” Guevarra said.
PAO is under the Department of Justice (DOJ).
Acosta had earlier said she is not against vaccination and would get herself vaccinated once a protein-based vaccine becomes available in the country.
Her admission drew a stern reaction from Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon who called on Malacanang and the DOJ to stop Acosta from reporting for work.
Drilon said he finds it unacceptable that while the government is persuading people to get their COVID-19 shots, Acosta remains unvaccinated.
“Hindi ba sampal iyon sa gobyerno? (Isn’t that a slap on the government?),” Drilon said in a statement.
“I hope it is not deliberate but Acosta’s recent statements can fuel vaccine hesitancy that we are trying to address,” Drilon noted.