DOH chief praises slain village doctor as a hero

KALIBO, Aklan—For Health Secretary Paulyn Jean Ubial, slain doctor Dreyfuss B. Perlas is a hero. “He dedicated his life serving the community in Lanao Del Norte,” said Ubial who flew to Kalibo International Airport over the weekend and accompanied the body of Perlas when it arrived in his home province of Aklan.

Ubial told the Perlas family that slain doctor who was serving in DOH’s Doctors to the Barrios Program was a recipient of the Bayani ng Kalusugan award.

The 31-year-old Perlas was shot dead by an unidentified gunman last week in Kapatagan, Lanao Del Norte.

Tributes and call for justice have poured in for the doctor who hailed from Batan town and studied in two universities in Iloilo City.

“We salute your sacrifices and mission to be of service to the underserved. May justice be given to you,” the alumni association of West Visayas State University (WVSU-College of Medicine), where he graduated in 2011, said in a statement.

University of the Philippines Visayas, where Perlas finished high school in 2002, also praised the doctor. “Dr. Perlas’ passion, commitment, and dedication to helping the poorest of the sick in a place far from his native province of Aklan will be remembered as his legacy of selfless public service to his fellow Filipinos,” the school said in a statement.

“The perpetrators of this dastardly act must be brought to justice. We at UPV demand that justice be served,” the statement added.