Panelo says Duterte can order arrest of unvaccinated

Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Salvador Panelo asserted that President Rodrigo Duterte's directive to arrest unvaccinated individuals is legally sound, arguing that constitutional provisions on public health are self-executory.

Panelo cited Articles 2, Sections 4 and 15 of the Constitution as his basis, which state the government's duty to serve and protect the people and promote the right to health.

However, Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra stated that criminal acts are defined by lawmakers, emphasizing that specific criminal offenses require legislation.

Guevarra's position contradicted Panelo's, as Guevarra noted there is no law on mandatory vaccination or criminalizing the refusal to get vaccinated.

Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque also said a law is needed to implement Duterte's plan.

The Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) president, Domingo Egon Cayosa, stated that Panelo's remark adds to the confusion, as other government lawyers have clarified that no arrest can be made without a law punishing vaccine refusal.

Constitutional law professor John Molo previously countered that these provisions grant powers to the State, not the President, and that Congress must first enact a law criminalizing vaccine refusal before arrests can be ordered.