‘Distance between them is a million miles apart’: Ted Herbosa is no Juan Flavier, says public health expert

Public health expert Dr. Tony Leachon has pushed back sharply against the promotional video circulating among government officials that pitches Health Secretary Ted Herbosa as a future senator in the mold of the late Senator Juan Flavier, saying the comparison stretches credibility beyond recognition.

The Situation Report’s story on the Herbosa promo video drew an immediate reaction from Leachon, who said the Flavier comparison falls flat.

“To compare himself to Senator Juan Flavier is to stretch credibility beyond recognition,” he said, describing Flavier as a physician who became a servant-leader remembered for humility, innovation, and genuine compassion.

Leachon said Herbosa, by contrast, has been “a politician in disguise — seeking power while failing to deliver performance,” adding that “the distance between them is not measured in years but in values: a million miles apart.”

The health expert cited a string of controversies under Herbosa’s watch, including Ombudsman cases, allegations of ghost hospitals, billions worth of expired medicines, and the creation of what he described as a program that weakens PhilHealth and undermines universal health care.

Leachon also hit Herbosa for his role in the transfer of P60 billion from PhilHealth reserves to the national treasury, a move later struck down by the Supreme Court as unconstitutional.

“This betrayal of public health funds undermined the very institution meant to protect the Filipino people,” he said.

The health expert said leadership is not about image but impact, and that the Filipino people deserve a health secretary who strengthens institutions, protects resources, and serves with humility—standards he said Herbosa has failed to meet.

“Public trust is sacred. Once broken, it cannot be restored by ambition or propaganda. It can only be rebuilt by truth, service, and reform,” Leachon said.