MEDICINES FOUND DUMPED IN BONBON

Medicines appeared to have been thrown away, instead of being delivered to the beneficiaries, says Councilor Pesquera, who wants the matter investigated

Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña has fired eight workers in the Long Life Medicine Assistance Program (LLMAP) for having no control in the implementation of the program.

This, as the City Council wants the Office of the Ombudsman to investigate the matter involving medicines thrown away in a grassy portion in Barangay Bonbon.

In a privilege speech last week, Councilor Jocelyn Pesquera said packs of medicines with the names of the beneficiaries of LLMAP were found in Bonbon last Nov. 28.

Pesquera showed the packs of medicines during her speech.

“It would seem that these medicines were supposed to be delivered to the beneficiaries of Long Life Medicine Assistance Program but were found disposed or thrown away instead. Were these medicines deliberately thrown away? If not, is there an appropriate report of its loss by the person assigned to deliver said medicines?” she said.

Pesquera said the barangay checked those whose names were written on the packs as beneficiaries. Two of them said they haven’t been getting the medicines from the City for months already.

One said there were times when the medicines were delivered, but there were also days that the personnel in-charge failed to deliver.

Last July, Pesquera said the Council approved P19 million for the LLMAP, P14 million of which was for medicines while P5 million was for the salary of those who delivered the medicines to the beneficiaries daily.