P-Noy urged to donate NHA land to children’s hospital

MANILA, Philippines - Eight members of the House independent bloc are urging President Aquino to order the donation of the land the Philippine Children’s Medical Center (PCMC) is occupying.

In a resolution, the group led by Leyte Rep. Martin Romualdez said Aquino should order the National Housing Authority (NHA) to donate the 3.7-hectare lot to PCMC.

“We are determined to help PCMC, and I think with our collective effort the President will see through our best intentions for the health of the children, most especially the less fortunate,” Romualdez said.

He said the donation of the property would prevent the NHA from evicting the premier government-owned children’s hospital in Quezon City from its location.

The lawmaker added that whatever funds PCMC has for purchasing the lot could be used instead in modernizing the hospital.

The other authors of the resolution include Representatives Diosdado Arroyo of Camarines Sur, Lito Atienza of party-list group Buhay and Jonathan de la Cruz of Abakada.

Militant party-list groups led by Gabriela have filed a separate resolution also urging the President to order the donation of the NHA property to PCMC.

Earlier, the House appropriations committee allocated P1.227 billion in the PCMC budget for next year to acquire the land it occupies from the NHA.

“We can assure the hospital’s patients, their parents, staff and other stakeholders that PCMC will stay put where it is, because we in the House give priority to our children’s health,” Davao City Rep. Isidro Ungab, committee chairman, said.

The amount is on top of the nearly P400 million in national government subsidy for the hospital for 2016.

NHA general manager Chito Cruz earlier said his agency would accept any of the solutions lawmakers are proposing.