Solon asks BOC to step up efforts vs. avian flu
THE chairman of the House committee on ways and means has asked the Bureau of Customs (BOC) to strengthen efforts to fight avian flu and ensure that smuggled poultry is condemned immediately upon apprehension.
Albay Rep. Joey Sarte Salceda, panel chairman, said he has oversight function on BOC as head of the panel and he supports as co-chair of the House Economic Stimulus and Recovery Cluster the efforts of the Department of Agriculture (DA) to fight a burgeoning outbreak of the H5N1 strain of avian flu among duck and quail farms in Bulacan and Pampanga.
“I write to you to offer my full support, as co-chair of the House Economic Stimulus and Recovery Cluster, for the Department of Agriculture’s efforts to contain the recently discovered H5N1 strain of influenza among duck and quail farms,” Salceda said in a letter to Agriculture Secretary William Dar.
Salceda also said he will request the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) “and the Department of Transportation (DOTr) to work with your department to craft guidelines to strengthen avian flu prevention measures.”
Salceda also offered “any endorsement your Department may require, either to the President, the Chairman of the Economic Development Cluster, or the House leadership, to fund or support your efforts to fight this potential outbreak.”
“I am aware of the gravity of this threat and its possible impact on economic recovery if left unchecked,” Salceda wrote Dar.
In subsequent statements, Salceda also reiterated his call for the Senate to approve the charter of the Virology Institute of the Philippines (VIP), the proposed research institute for non-human viral infections and prevention.
“The VIP is clearly critical to ensuring recovery in the agriculture sector. Vietnam has a similar institute, and it helped them recover from the African Swine Fever outbreak rather quickly,” Salceda said.
“Having a virology institute for non-human contexts would have been a significant help in keeping the recent avian flu outbreak in check,” Salceda explained.
Salceda is the principal author of the measure in the House, which has already approved the measure on the 3rd reading. Last year, Congressmen unanimously passed House Bill 9599 or the proposed Virology Institute of the Philippines (VIP) Act via a vote of 198-0 with no abstention.
“Viruses among animals and plants are just as common an occurrence as they are among humans. And, of course, zoonotic viruses that affect humans begin among animals anyway. So, we really need to be ahead of the curve and be able to research viruses that are specific to our context and to our national needs,” Salceda said.
“This is also a presidential priority and hopefully a legacy that President Duterte can bequeath to the country before his term ends. I am still optimistic that there is time in the Senate to complete this. My fellow principal author of this bill in the Senate, Senator Bong Go, also reiterated his call for the measure’s passage a few days ago, signifying that we can still realistically have this enacted before the administration turns the government over,” Salceda added.
