Makati: Ambulance recall followed DOH guidelines

MANILA, Philippines — The recall of an ambulance previously assigned to an enlisted men’s barrio or “embo” barangay complied with conditions stated in the deed of donation executed by the Department of Health (DOH), a Makati City official said yesterday.

“Contrary to a recent social media post of Taguig accusing us of summarily pulling out the ambulance from Barangay Comembo, we did it to make the necessary repairs and ensure its roadworthiness before we return it to the DOH,” city administrator Claro Certeza said in a statement.

Barangay Comembo is part of the 10 “embo” barangays that are now under the jurisdiction of Taguig.

Certeza pointed out that Makati is the “rightful owner” of the ambulance since it was donated by DOH to the city government and not particularly to Barangay Comembo.

He added that Makati cannot directly hand over the ambulance to Taguig since it has to be returned first to the DOH with a formal notice of revocation.

A stipulation under the DOH deed of donation states that “the donee shall surrender the possession of the equipment and ambulance to the donor within 15 working days from the notice of revocation” in case the deed of donation is revoked.

“It’s so obvious that you (Taguig) only want to discredit Makati to cover up for Taguig’s shortcomings for the embos,” Certeza said.

“Please stop spreading lies and playing the victim. Be sure to back your statements with concrete evidence to spare yourselves from embarrassment and ridicule,” he added.

In explaining the recall of the vehicle from Barangay Comembo, Certeza said that Makati conducted a general inspection of the ambulance in August 2023 and coordinated with the DOH for needed repairs as it was still under warranty.

In November, the ambulance was pulled out for battery replacement and other repairs until January this year.

Certeza noted, however, that Makati was in constant coordination with the DOH for the past two months for the orderly return of the ambulance to Barangay Comembo.

Aside from this, Certeza pointed out that another ambulance in Barangay Comembo, which was also donated by DOH to Makati, was temporarily pulled out on Jan. 24 for inventory and licensing purposes.

He added, however, that the ambulance was returned to the barangay on Feb. 8 and has remained there to date.

The DOH donated four ambulances to the city government through the Ospital ng Makati in July 2021. One of the ambulances was assigned to Barangay Rizal, an “embo” barangay.