Mega rehab a miscalculation, Palace admits

MANILA, Philippines — The mega rehabilitation center in Nueva Ecija can be used for other purposes, Malacañang said yesterday, after the chief of the Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB) described the construction of the facility as a “miscalculation.”  

DDB chairman Dionisio Santiago said those who pushed for the building of the 100,000-square meter rehabilitation center may have miscalculated as he suggested the construction of smaller facilities. 

Santiago said a huge, centralized facility makes it difficult and costly for the families of drug dependents to visit their loved ones. 

Presidential spokesman Harry Roque said he agrees with the statement of Santiago that smaller rehabilitation centers are more effective in addressing the problem. 

“We agree with that. The problem is the government did not build it. A Chinese said, ‘I will build a mega center.’ We cannot refuse because he has the right to decide on how he will spend his money,” Roque explained.

He was referring to Huang Rulun, the Chinese businessman who donated $3.6 billion to build the rehabilitation facility in Fort Magsaysay. 

Roque said small rehabilitation centers would be more manageable as the setup would provide more attention to patients, especially the young ones. 

The mega rehabilitation center has about 400 clients, way lower than its 10,000-person capacity. 

Roque said the facility can be used for other purposes.

“It is inside a camp so we can use it as a dwelling place for soldiers. It can serve as an office. If it cannot be used by rehab clients, it will never run out of functions,” the presidential spokesman said. 

The mega rehabilitation facility was inaugurated on Nov. 29, 2016. 

The facility occupies a land area of 11 hectares with 172 building units, making it the first large- scale drug rehabilitation center in the country.