Duterte orders immediate repair of Bicol health facilities

LEGAZPI CITY, Albay, Philippines — President Rodrigo Duterte on Sunday ordered the Department of Health (DOH) to fast-track the rehabilitation of health centers damaged by the series of typhoons that hit the Bicol region recently.

In the situation briefing on the effects of Typhoon “Ulysses” (international name: Vamco) held in Pili town, Camarines Sur province, on Sunday, Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said the region needed about P290 million for the repair of hospitals, rural health facilities, barangay health stations and other offices.

Duque, speaking during the briefing presided by the President, gave assurance of enough funds for the rehabilitation of these medical facilities.

‘Cut the time’

The President arrived by helicopter in Pili around 4 p.m. and immediately proceeded to the provincial capitol where he met local officials. Earlier in the day, he visited typhoon-stricken Cagayan Valley and made an aerial survey of the devastation wrought by the typhoon on Camarines Sur.

Duterte stressed the need to speed up the process of delivering the services needed by the affected communities.

“Historically is that the government moves slowly, especially the national government, so if you can make it, cut the time to something like half or more than, especially now that the time is of the essence actually, they need to get called to those things that are needed by them,” he said.

Basic service One priority, Duque said, was the repair of isolation and quarantine centers for the coronavirus disease response in the provinces of Albay, Camarines Sur, Camarines Norte and Catanduanes that were damaged by Typhoon “Rolly” (Goni), which hit Bicol on Nov. 1, and by Ulysses last week, causing widespread floods primarily in the Camarines provinces.

“We need money right away because this is the basic service that needs immediate attention and repair,” he said.

Earlier, the DOH reported damage in Bicol Regional Training and Teaching Hospital and Bicol Regional Diagnostic and Reference Laboratory in Legazpi City, Bicol Medical Center in Naga City, and Bicol Region General Hospital and Geriatric Medical Center in Cabusao town, Camarines Sur.

Damaged local government hospitals were Ziga Memorial District Hospital in Tabaco City, Albay, and Juan M. Alberto Memorial District Hospital in San Andres town, Catanduanes.