Lawmaker wants probe on health centers scam

MANILA, Philippines — Bayan Muna party-list Rep. Carlos Zarate has urged the House of Representatives to look into “irregularities” in the implementation of the P8.1-billion barangay health stations project of the Department of Health (DOH) launched during the term of former health secretary Janette Garin.            

In a resolution, Zarate alleged that only a few hundred of the 5,700 health centers to be built in public elementary schools in 2015 and 2016 were constructed and that many of these are either incomplete or unusable.            

He said the project was implemented without a specific funding in the national budget. Both the first phase of the contract, worth P4.5 billion and good for 3,200 health stations, and second phase, for P3.6 billion and 2,500 health centers, were awarded to JBros Construction in 2016.

Zarate pointed out that the amount is already more than twice the 2018 operating funds of at least 66 government hospitals. 

“The P1.2-billion mobilization fee (P668 million for phase 1 and P551 million for phase 2) was immediately released to JBros under the leadership of secretary Garin,” Zarate pointed out.

Last March 13, he added, JBros submitted to the DOH a notice of termination of contract and demanded payment of P2.1 billion for supposedly completing 429 barangay health stations. However, verification showed only 270 clinics were built and only eight were covered by complete documents.

Zarate alleged that many of the “finished health centers” were actually unfinished or could not be used as they “lacked the equipment or were severely dilapidated.”