Roque refuses to give 'legal advice' on Defensor's move to give away ivermectin to public

Saying he doesn't have all the facts, presidential spokesperson Harry Roque on Tuesday refused to weigh in on the legality of Anakalusugan party-list Representative Michael Defensor’s initiative to distribute ivermectin to Quezon City residents as a way to prevent COVID-19 infection.

Ivermectin, an anti-parasitic drug, has yet to be approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for human use. At present, its permit is limited to treating parasitic ailment of animals.

Asked about the legality of Defensor's action, Roque, a lawyer, said: "I will not give legal advice on something that I am not engaged with professionally. It is the mandate of the FDA to give an approval if a drug is effective."

"Hindi po siya nagbebenta. Ipinamamahagi po niya pero depende rin to if this could reach  [the level of] distribution. I don’t want to give a legal opinion if I do not have all the facts," he added.

(Congressman Defensor is not selling it. He gives it to people but it will also depend on the volume that he is giving away, if it could reach the level considered distribution.)

Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra also declined to comment on Defensor’s possible legal liability.

“As Secretary of Justice, it’s not proper for me to comment on one’s criminal liability unless a case is actually before me,” Guevarra said in a text message.

Guevarra, however, said he was “quite sure” that Defensor knows “what acts are permitted and what acts are prohibited” under the FDA law.

In an interview  earlier in the day, Defensor said that the accountability on using Ivermectin ultimately falls on the person who agreed to use it.

"May consent naman 'yung tao doon eh (People give consent to use it)," he said.

"The point is before you get the prescription, before you are allowed to take it, may consent 'yung tao, may consent naman 'yung tao doon eh.  Medical practice naman 'yan talaga eh na ito iinumin ko, pe-prescribe ko sa 'yo and the recipient, pumapayag para dito," Defensor answered in a virtual interview when pressed by reporters on Tuesday.

(Before they get the prescription, before they are allowed to take it, people give their consent. It's been a medical practice that one gives consent when a doctor prescribes him/her with a certain medicine.)

Roque earlier said that an application for compassionate use for ivermectin has already been lodged before the FDA. The FDA, however, has yet to decide on it.

FDA Director General Eric Domingo already said that a compassionate use permit only allows the legal administration of the drug in the country but is not tantamount to the FDA guaranteeing the drug’s safety and efficacy.  --with Virgil Lopez/KBK, GMA News