HEALTH Secretary Esperanza Cabral is unperturbed by violent reactions to her controversial policies and programs, which she asserts are beneficial to the country and its citizens.

In her keynote address during the opening of the three-day National Medical Specialist Summit on June 3 at the CSI Stadia in Dagupan City, Cabral said she will pursue her controversial programs including sex education in the school, even at the kindergarten level.

Cabral, a noted cardiologist, told her audience of 400 medical specialists that she will never waver in her pronouncements because these are for the good of the country and people.

“Teaching sex education even to innocent children in kindergarten school is not a weird idea… In fact toddlers are even asking where their kid brothers and sisters came from and why their big brother has a different sex organ than her,” she said.

She added these innocent queries are part of sex education.

REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH

Cabral also openly supports passage of the Reproductive Health Bill, which remains pending in Congress.

She said the bill, which has been strongly opposed by the Catholic Church, will benefit couples, their children and the country as a whole not just in terms of curbing population explosion but also in respecting the right of a man and a woman to decide and plan on the size of their family.

To support the couples, she said it is the duty of government to provide them proper information.

SMOKING

Meanwhile, Cabral also stands by her administrative order on the use of graphic information on tobacco packs warning on the consequences of cigarette smoking.

This expectedly earned the ire of tobacco manufacturers and tobacco farmers, including some from parts of the Ilocos Region.

But Cabral pointed out that her order is in compliance with a treaty signed by President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo in 2003 called “Framework Convention on Tobacco Control” and was ratified by the Senate in 2005, making it into law.

With the administrative order, the government will begin to confiscate cigarettes packs without the graphic information as required by law.

THERAPEUTIC CLAIMS

At the same time, Cabral is also standing by her other administrative order to translate from English to Filipino the warning appearing in packs of herbal and dietary supplements that says “No Therapeutic Claims Approved”.

She said this is intended for easier understanding by consumers who, most of the time are being misled into buying these as alternative to prescription drugs.

The Filipino translation, “Mahalagang paalala: Ito (name of product) ay hindi gamot at hindi maaring gamot sa anumang sakit“, has been questioned by the Chamber of Herbal Industry of the Philippines, Inc.

CONDOMS AND AIDS

Cabral also acknowledged that she incurred the ire of priests when on Valentine’s Day this year, her department distributed condoms to couples.

She defended the move saying her department was simply delivering a strong message for couples to protect themselves from HIV/AIDS (Human Immuno Virus/Acute Immuno Deficiency Syndrome).

The health secretary cited the rising cases of HIV/AIDS in the country. This year, 150 new cases were found.

To date, DOH is diagnosing at least five HIV/AIDS cases daily. –LM

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