The Quezon City Regional Trial Court has junked the bid of former Health Secretary and now Congresswoman Janet Garin to dismiss the damage suit against her, in connection with the controversial Dengvaxia vaccine.
In an order released on Wednesday, the Quezon City RTC Branch 230 denied the motion to dismiss filed by Garin regarding the civil damage suit for lack of jurisdiction on ground that none of the parties reside in the city.
Garin also argued that the complaint against her failed to state any cause of action to justify a claim for damages.
However, the lower court declared that under the rules, the plaintiff, in this case, Ian L. Colite, a security guard from Cavite has the prerogative to choose the venue where the case will be filed.
“Prescinding therefrom, the court finds the venue properly laid by the plaintiff when he chose to file the instant complaint in this court by reason of the residence of one of the impleaded defendants which he considers as a principal defendant,” the RTC order stated.
The court was referring to defendant Zuellig, the local distributor of Sanofi Pasteur, the manufacturer of the vaccine.
Colite’s son received two doses of the vaccine who died in December 2017.
With regard to the cause of action, the court ruled that it is sufficient to proceed with the trial.
“Upon perusal of the Complaint, the Court finds the allegations in the complaint sufficient to constitute a cause of action…it is incumbent upon the court to deny the instant motion to dismiss and proceed to trial to prove the defense of herein defendant. Thus, this court should still proceed with the determination of the principal action so that an adjudication of the rights of the parties can be had,” the court said.
The RTC gave Garin 15 days to comment on the civil suit.
Garin argued that Ian Colite, father of the late Zandro Colite, also failed to establish sufficient basis to claim for damages.
“As to the ground of failure to state a cause of action, plaintiff Ian L. Colite posits that by raising the same, Dr. Janet L. Garin, hypothetically admits the fact as stated in the Complaint and their liabilities in the case at bar,” Loja-Pangilinan said.
“Upon perusal of the Complaint, the Court finds the allegations in the Complaint sufficient to constitute a cause of action, and defendant’s averments as merely directed to the veracity and correctness of the allegations found therein,” the order read.
“WHEREFORE, premises considered, defendant Dr. Janet L. Garin’s Motion to Dismiss is hereby DENIED,” it stated.
The 11-year-old victim from Imus, Cavite died on Dec. 27, 2017 less than 24 hours after feeling the symptoms of severe dengue.
He received three doses of the anti-dengue vaccine in June 2016, January 2017 and June 2017.
In November 2017, Sanofi Pasteur Inc., the Dengvaxia manufacturer, in a statement, said “for those not previously infected by dengue virus, however… moreover cases of severe disease could occur following vaccination upon subsequent dengue infection.”
The Public Attorney’s Office represented the other Dengvaxia victims in the filing of multiple counts of reckless imprudence resulting in homicide as well as several civil suits against Garin, Health Secretary Francisco Duque III, Philippine Children’s Medical Center executive director Julius Lecciones, and other former and active health officials before the Department of Justice and the lower courts, respectively.