FDA chief grilled over online sale of counterfeit drugs

Senators on Tuesday berated Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Director General Paolo Teston for what they called his failure to address the widespread sale of counterfeit and unregistered health products online and in physical stores.

During a Senate Committee on Health and Demography hearing, Senator Raffy Tulfo said his team conducted a test buy on Shopee and was able to purchase prescription-only medicines without being required to present a doctor’s prescription.

He also flagged a surge in the sale of certain medications on TikTok and other online platforms. Some unregistered and fake products, he said, are also prevalent in retail stores.

“Sir, inutil ka po. I’m sorry to tell you. You’re incompetent. 'Yan mismo sinabi ng ARTA (Anti-Red Tape Authority). Kayo ang one of the most complained-about agencies. ARTA na po mismo nagsabi niyan,” the elder Tulfo told Teston.

(Sir, you are inutile. I'm sorry to tell you. You're incompetent. ARTA has said you are one of the most complained-about agencies.)

Tulfo also challenged Teston and top FDA officials to resign, accusing them of incompetence and alleging that their failure to curb the unregulated sale of medicines was tied to bribes.

“At durugtungan ko—dapat kayo, karamihan sa management, magsi-resign na kayo. Inutil kayo eh. Wala kayong ginagawa kundi humintay lang siguro ng lagay mula sa malalaking pharmaceutical companies," he said.

"‘Yung mga hindi naglalagay, sorry kayo. ‘Yung mga naglalagay, tuloy-tuloy lang ang ligaya,” he added.

(And may I add—most of you in management should resign. You're useless, and you're doing nothing but maybe waiting for kickbacks from big pharmaceutical companies. Those who don’t pay are punished, while those who do continue without consequence.)

In response, Teston said he respects the senator’s opinion on how he runs the FDA. He maintained that he has expanded the agency’s human resources and made progress during his tenure.

Asked by Senator Erwin Tulfo if he would step down as FDA Director General, Teston replied: “Your Honor, I serve at the pleasure of the President. Since I assumed office, I have devoted my time and effort to this agency to improve it.”

Teston, however, said he is open to yielding his position if required.

“If there is someone better than me to head the agency, I’d gladly yield the post to that better person, Madam Chairperson," he said, addressing committee chair Sen. Risa Hontiveros.

"But for now, while I’m still here, since resignation is a voluntary act, I will continue exercising my function as Director General,” he added.

Sen. Erwin Tulfo also asked Teston if the FDA has imposed sanctions against companies selling unregistered health products.

Teston, who is also a lawyer, said that under Republic Act No. 9711, which amended Republic Act No. 3720, the penalty for administrative cases ranges from P50,000 to P500,000.

The FDA chief noted that around 3,000 administrative cases are currently pending before the FDA for violations of RA 3720 and RA 9711.

FDA Director III Franklin Anthony Tabaquin admitted that no one has been jailed yet because courts impose only fines.

“Under the Internet Transactions Act, while the law provides for extraterritorial application, the reality is we cannot go abroad to file a case or extradite because most of these products are foreign-made,” Tabaquin said.

“For local products, based on the intelligence we gathered, their packaging is altered because they are small,” he added.—MCG, GMA Integrated News