Cebuanos contribute to build new hospital

MARIETA Suson, 53, is among the Cebuanos who donated to the city’s fund-raising campaign to build a new city hospital. Junjie Mendoza / CDN

Eight-year-old Melissa took a P10 coin from her earnings from selling refrigerator magnets at  Magellan’s Cross on Magallanes Street, walked  to City Hall and dropped the coin into an empty 5-gallon plastic bottle of mineral water.

“Let that small amount be my contribution for the construction of a new hospital that will especially benefit poor people like me,” she said in Cebuano.

The city government launched the Piso Mo, Hospital Ko campaign on Oct. 21 to raise P1.5 billion to build a new and a better equipped city hospital to replace  Cebu City Medical Center (CCMC). The three-story CCMC building was declared unfit for occupancy following the 7.2-magnitude  earthquake that hit Cebu and Bohol provinces on Oct. 15.

Melissa, who helps sell souvenir items at a stall run by her parents near  Magellan’s Cross, promised to drop more coins into the donation bottle placed at the entrance of the City Hall legislative building.

Getting personal

The family is dependent on the city-run hospital for their medical needs, explained Melissa, the eldest of five siblings. She recalled that when her 2-year-old brother, Michael, had diarrhea in August and was vomiting, her parents brought him to CCMC on Natalio Bacalso Avenue for free medical treatment.

“If not for CCMC, my brother would not have been well,” she said.

After the powerful earthquake, government engineers found huge and deep cracks on the second- and third-floor columns and near the stairs of CCMC, which affected the structural integrity of the 45-year-old building.

The hospital’s 133 patients were sheltered in makeshift tents along the front sidewalk and later transferred to the Bureau of Fire Protection  building across the street. Those in critical condition were moved to other hospitals.

CCMC has not been accepting new patients since the earthquake, but it continues to operate its outpatient department and emergency room in what used to be the city fire department, said hospital chief Gloria Duterte.

The fire department was relocated to the Pari-an substation.

City coffers

To raise money for the new building, the city government initiated the fund drive. A Banco de Oro  trust fund with account No. 002-6800-79333 was also opened by the city to accept donations.

Jose Daluz III, executive assistant of Mayor Michael Rama, said the mayor’s office would keep track of all donations for proper liquidation in  the Commission on Audit (COA). “We have to submit the proper reports to the COA because this [fund-raising] is a city government initiative,” he said.

But why does Cebu City—a premier urban center—have to solicit funds to build a hospital?

Mayor Rama said the new hospital would be better equipped but would cost about P1.5 billion.

The city government, however, doesn’t have the money to build such a facility.

Its treasurer’s office has not reached its collection target of P6.4 billion to fund the 2013 budget of P5.4 billion. As of early October, it amassed only P3.9 billion—a shortfall of P2.5 billion.

While the city has P1.2 billion in the bank, most of its deposits are under a trust account or time deposits. As of Oct. 30, the trust fund had P437.6 million, which could be used only for its intended purpose.

Another P209.4 million is under the  Special Education Fund  account, while P27.2 million is classified as “barrio funds” meant for barangay-related projects.

General funds amounted to P499.4 million of which P260.3 million are in time deposits.

Records of the City Treasurer’s Office  also showed that as of Oct. 22, the city had payables of P147.1 million to be charged to general funds.

2014 budget proposal

Rama’s proposed budget of P10.4 billion next year also does not include funding for a new hospital but only P172 million for CCMC renovation. The proposal was submitted to the city council on Oct. 18, or three days after the quake.

City administrator Jose Marie Poblete said the allocation for CCMC renovation might be realigned to help fund the hospital project.

“The mayor’s budget proposal was already there even before the earthquake … . It was already difficult for us to make changes on the budget because we also had to meet the deadline for its submission to the city council,” Poblete said.

The Local Government Code requires the executive department to present its proposed budget for the succeeding year to the legislative department on or before the Oct. 16 deadline of the current year.

Councilor Margot Osmeña, who chairs the budget committee, said the council would support the project once a funding source was identified.

But in the absence of money, the city should reconsider retrofitting the old CCMC building, Councilor Gerardo Carillo said. “The construction of a new hospital could come later.”

Private donors

As of Oct. 31, the city government had already raised P7.3 million.

Among those who donated were SM Prime Holdings head Hans Sy, who gave P5 million; Asociacion Benevola de Cebu Inc., which owns Perpetual Succour Hospital, P1 million; and Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte, P500,000.

Taguig City Mayor Lani Cayetano promised to give P500,000. Her husband,

Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano, dropped P100,000 in crisp P500 bills into the donation bottle during the Oct. 21 launching of Piso Mo, Hospital Ko.

Another P200,000 was raised from 80 barangay officials and ordinary Cebuanos.

The city government was expanding its fund drive to tap the private sector, including Cebuanos working abroad, Councilor Mary Ann de los Santos said.

She said donation bottles would be placed in private and public places.

A Facebook page was created on Oct. 22 to initiate discussions and post updates of the fund-raising campaign. It had generated 859 “likes” as of Nov. 2.