FDA, other agencies to form task force vs fake product ads
By Raymund Antonio and Raymund Antonio
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Director General Dr. Samuel Zacate announced on Tuesday, Feb. 13, that together with other agencies, they would create a task force against fake product advertisements to be launched this year.
(From left) FDA Director General Dr. Samuel Zacate and FDA Director Joyce Cirunay during the sectoral meeting in Malacañang on Tuesday, Feb. 13, 2024. (Photo from the Presidential Communications Office)
The official said during a Palace press briefing after a sectoral meeting with President Marcos that the fake product ads are “very problematic” but that it’s hard to catch the culprits because these incidents happen online.
“So, ang problem lang po kasi dito sa mga online ulitin ko po (the problem with online is, I will repeat), since the last interview, when the post they can always take down the post,” he explained.
“So, if we see the product, if we give a subpoena or summon to those fake advertises, we need a certain location, kinakailangan namin ma-serve iyong notice sa kanila. And ang problema doon karamihan po diyan mga wala naman pong opisina, kasi nga po peke eh ‘di ba (we need to serve the notice to them. The problem is many of them don’t have offices, because they are fake, right)?”
The FDA coordinates with the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to locate the culprits but many of them would simply take down the post once investigated or interrogated.
Zacate lamented that these social media users would simply “move and they create another one.”
The task force, which will include the NBI, the Philippine National Police-Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG), the National Intelligence Coordinating Agency (NICA), and the Intellectual Property Office (IPO), will be “one unitary enforcement agency.”
Aside from the agencies, the FDA chief also said they are working together with other celebrities, though he did not disclose their names.
He also issued a reminder about the importance of using only FDA-approved products.
“Basically, the approval of the FDA, iyon lang po ang (only that is) safe, efficient and quality,” he said, adding that products approved for certain indications must only be used for what they are approved for.
His warning came a month after the agency warned the public against unauthorized glutathione use despite the proliferation of these products being advertised on social media, and amid endorsements by celebrities of certain clinics that offer whitening services.