Duterte orders arrest of makers of fake drugs

Unilab Inc., manufacturer of Biogesic, warned about the fake tablets on its Facebook account on March 26.

Speaking to Palace reporters, Panelo said Duterte expressed intent on Tuesday night, March 27, to file economic sabotage charges against those who are accountable for the proliferaton of fake drugs in pharmacies.

“The President has ordered the chief PNP (Director General Ronald dela Rosa) to arrest all persons who manufacture, import, distribute, sell, administer, dispense fake drugs,” Panelo said.

“And they will be charged with economic sabotage because those acts undermine not only the economy because it will affect the law of supply and demand, and affect the prices, but it also threatens the security of the nation because it endagers the vast health of the people,” he added.

Panelo cautioned that the presence of fake medicines could result in “considerable loss of government revenues, specifically in the form of taxes.”

He added that the President would not allow the purchase and use of the fake medicines as it “poses potential danger or injury to consumers.”

“Substandard and falsified medicines have become a global pandemic, impacting the safety of patients around the world. It is estimated that 10 percent of the world’s medicines are counterfeit on average, with peaks of up to 70 percent in developing countries,” Panelo said.

In its advisory, the FDA noted that Biogesic now comes in an oval-shaped pill, instead of the round tablet. The fake drug also has a different color and comes in packaging with different foil pattern, foil material and print color.

The agency said importation, selling, or offering for sale of counterfeit medicines is a violation of Republic Act No. 9711 or the FDA Act of 2009, as well as Republic Act No. 8203, or the Special Law on Counterfeit Drugs. (Ruth Abbey Gita/With a report from HDT/SunStar Philippines)