There is no conflict of interest between the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) panel of prosecutors and the Public Attorney’s Office (PAO) in the prosecution of cases before the Quezon City regional trial court (RTC) on the deaths as of several persons, mostly children, after allegedly getting shots of Dengvaxia, an anti-dengue vaccine.
At the same time, both the DOJ and PAO ruled out any conflict of interest in the preliminary investigation of the Dengvaxia cases and on any appeal which may be brought before the Office of the Secretary of Justice.
The alleged conflict of interest surfaced with the appointment of DOJ Undersecretary Jesse Hermogenes T. Andres who had been designated to oversee the DOJ’s National Prosecution Service (NPS).
Undersecretary Andres’ law firm used to represent former health secretary and now Iloilo First District Rep. Janette L. Garin who is among those named respondents and charged in the Dengvaxia cases.
PAO’s clients, mostly from the poor and marginalized sectors of society, raised the issue of possible conflict of interest on the part of Undersecretary Andres.
PAO represented the families of the victims in the filing of criminal complaints before the DOJ while a panel of prosecutors from the DOJ’s NPS is handling the prosecution of the cases that have been filed so far before the QC RTC.
In a joint statement, the DOJ and PAO said they are “one in seeking justice.”
“The DOJ reassures the PAO, the parties to the Dengvaxia cases and the general public that there has never been and never will be any conflict of interest in the resolution of the cases,” the statement said.
The joint statement also said:
“Recently, the PAO raised concerns of possible conflict of interest. These concerns were manifested through their request for the inhibition of the Department of Justice Panel of State Prosecutors (DOJ Panel) from handling the prosecution of the Dengvaxia cases and allow the Office of the City Prosecutor of Quezon City (OCP-QC). For their part, the PAO seeks to protect the DOJ from any unfair speculation, perception, and impression of prejudgment and bias.
“Subsequently, the PAO wrote Secretary Jesus Crispin C. Remulla requesting for the inhibition of Undersecretary Jesse Hermogenes T. Andres from supervising the National Prosecution Service in the Dengvaxia cases due to possible conflict of interest. The request is anchored on a supposed conflict of interest relative to his previous engagement as the counsel for Dr. Janette L. Garin in the Dengvaxia cases.
“To be clear, the control and supervision of the prosecution of the criminal case rests with the DOJ Panel and there is neither factual nor legal basis to replace them or transfer the cases to the Quezon City Prosecutor’s Office.
“The DOJ and PAO will guard against being swayed by undue accusations coming from its clients. There is indeed no place for undue influence coming from litigants in the legal process. Observance of this advice will further preserve the integrity of the resolution that will be issued by the DOJ Panel.
“Undersecretary Andres’ action prior to his assumption to office and shortly thereafter are consistent with the rules of professional responsibility of Lawyers. Rule 22.01 states that, a lawyer may withdraw his services when the lawyer is elected or appointed to public office.
“As early as June 1, 2022, his firm (Andres Padernal & Paras Law Offices withdrew its appearance as counsel for Dr. Janette P. Loreto-Garin. This is seen from the “Withdrawal of Appearance” filed by the law firm on said date. Moreover, upon his assumption into office, even before his official appointment as an Undersecretary, he inhibited himself from the sixteen (16) related cases of petitions for review involving Dengvaxia cases due to his inhibition to resolve the same cases. Thus, he forwarded the entire records to the Secretary Appeals Management on July 7, 2022.
“The rules on inhibition observed by the prosecution, particularly the Manual for Prosecutors, 2017 Edition, do not apply to Undersecretary Andres. He neither handles the prosecution of the cases before the courts nor exerts any influence on the discretion of the DOJ Panel.
“Undersecretary Andres follows and guides himself with the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officers and Code of Professional Responsibility. While he is the Undersecretary in charge of the National Prosecution Service (NPS), he does not influence the NPS’ discretion in its investigation and prosecution of criminal cases.
“To date, there has not been one instance where the Undersecretary’s actions have given a speck of doubt of his non-involvement in the Dengvaxia cases.”
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