MANILA – Malacañang on Tuesday turned down the call of Dr. Anthony “Tony” Leachon to abolish the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID).
Leachon was merely “sourgraping” when he made the suggestion because he failed to convince President Rodrigo Duterte to appoint him as the head of the Department of Health (DOH), Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said in a virtual press conference.
“Kay (To) Dr. Tony Leachon, sir, the President has addressed your views. You’re sourgraping because he did not appoint you as secretary of health. Pasensyahan na lang po (Sorry but your suggestion won’t be accepted),” Roque said.
In an interview with news channel OnePH on Monday, Leachon proposed the abolition of IATF-EID, saying the task force is making decisions without a scientific basis.
Leachon, a former special adviser to the National Policy Against Coronavirus Disease 2019 (NTF Covid-19), said IATF-EID has become “irrelevant at this point in time.”
“I think it’s about time na i-revisit natin kung anong role ng IATF (to revisit the role of IATF). It has become a bottleneck area for the decision that is based on science. And at the end of the day, we should delegate it to the Metro Manila mayors in terms of implementation kasi mas nakakaalam sila (because they are more knowledgeable) on the pulse of the nation,” he said.
Leachon’s suggestion came after Metro Manila mayors raised worry over the decision of IATF-EID to allow the reopening of some indoor leisure establishments such as cinemas.
The IATF-EID, in Resolution 99 issued on Feb. 11, allowed the resumption of businesses, including cinemas, in areas under general community quarantine (GCQ) beginning Feb. 15.
It, however, decided to move the reopening of traditional movie theaters in Metro Manila to March 1, subject to the approval of local governments.
Leachon claimed netizens are “brighter” and “more practical” than IATF-EID.
“Mas matatalino pa nga ang netizens natin eh… Mas praktikal pang mag-isip ang netizens. At saka ang dami pa nilang guidelines na naveto. Kasi walang maipresent na scientific reason para sa cinema (Netizens are brighter and more practical. IATF has so many guidelines that have been vetoed. They could not even present a scientific reason for the reopening of cinemas),” he said.
Ulterior motive
NTF Covid-19 chief implementer Carlito Galvez Jr., who joined Roque at the virtual presser, also shrugged off Leachon’s proposal, saying the latter has no “word of honor.”
“Ang advice ko lang kay Dr. Leachon, hindi mo pinagbuti ang trabaho mo sa IATF at ang nakita natin, meron kang ulterior motive aside from serving our people kaya tinanggal ho namin kayo. ‘Yun pa lang nakita natin na si Dr Leachon wala talagang word of honor yan, talagang mahirap makasama (Dr. Leachon did not perform well during his stint at IATF. And he has ulterior motive aside from serving our people that’s why we let him go. He has no word of honor and we can’t work with him),” Galvez said.
In June last year, Leachon announced that he vacated his post as a consultant to the NTF Covid-19.
A day after his announcement, Roque said Duterte was “displeased” with Leachon’s remarks against the DOH’s Covid-19 response efforts. (PNA)
