Sen. Raffy Tulfo has called on Health Secretary Ted Herbosa to honor his promise to remove FDA Director-General Paolo Teston after Tulfo’s office succeeded in having hundreds of dangerous products taken down from major online platforms.
In a Senate privilege speech on Dec. 15, Tulfo said products flagged under FDA Public Health Warning Advisories and sold on Shopee, Lazada and TikTok Shop were removed in just seven working days, proving the job could be done with minimal effort.
Tulfo renewed his criticism of the FDA for failing to stop the sale of unregistered and harmful products, saying repeated leadership changes have not fixed what he called inefficiency, negligence or corruption within the agency.
The senator urged Herbosa to “make true your word” and demand Teston’s resignation for the sake of public health.
Herbosa recalled that during earlier budget hearings, he warned that if banned products remained online, the FDA chief should step down.
The Health secretary later accepted Tulfo’s challenge, saying he would personally remove Teston if Tulfo managed to have the products taken down himself.
By Dec. 9, a total of 700 FDA-flagged products were removed — 373 from Lazada, 189 from Shopee and 138 from TikTok Shop.IMT
