Lawmaker secures fund commitment for Basilan hospital upgrade

MANILA, Philippines — A lawmaker has secured a commitment from the Department of Health (DOH) to fund and upgrade a public hospital in Basilan that has allegedly been neglected for 24 years.

Basilan Rep. Mujiv Hataman last week moved to defer the proposed DOH budget for 2023 following the agency’s failure to implement a law mandating the upgrade of the Basilan General Hospital (BGH) from Level 1 to 2.

“BGH suffered 24 years of neglect from the DOH, the agency supposed to oversee its enhancement. It’s been 24 years that Basileños have been making the sacrifice only because of the neglect committed by DOH officials,” Hataman said.

He said Republic Act 8543, which was passed on Feb. 23, 1998, provides for the upgrading of the BGH.

He said the BGH remains a Level 1 hospital, which is allowed to maintain only 25 beds.

Hataman withdrew his motion after Marikina City Rep. Stella Luz Quimbo, who sponsored the DOH budget, assured him that health officials would resolve the issue.

Quimbo said the DOH committed to facilitate the application for the license to operate a 100-bed capacity for the BGH by November.

“We’re hoping that the government include this in the 2023 budget so we can start the upgrade sooner or by next year,” Hataman said.

The exchange between Hataman and Quimbo started when he found out that the DOH has unobligated funds of over P500 million under its health facilities enhancement program for this year.