Garcia hits back at critics

Cebu Governor Gwendolyn Garcia turned the tables on her critics who slammed her administration over mismanagement of the province’s provincial and district hospitals.

Garcia, who is seeking reelection, said the medical equipment in provincial hospitals were upgraded and medical personnel were promoted.

“When I took over we could only do 12-15 test... now we can now do 62 tests in our four provincial hospitals.”

“In Balamban (provincial hospital), we now have a 10bed hemodialysis center and soon the other provincial hospitals will also be carrying the same,” said Garcia.

In two years, she said, at least 72 medical workers were promoted, reappointed, and regularized.

Garcia was elected as governor in 2019. She succeeded former governor and now Vice Governor Hilario Davide III. Based on the data of the Provincial Health Office (PHO), 36 medical personnel were promoted and 13 were reemployed.

“33 of which are medical officers or doctors. Of the 33 medical officers, it is interesting to know that some of them have been re-employed...Why? Because when I left on my third term as governor, they were previously empoloyed with the Province of Cebu.

Somehow they were no longer employed when I was no longer governor, so now they were put into job order status,” said Garcia.

“More than 30 nurses have been promoted and employed...and I am not doing anything for hospital personnel? I wonder why these 72 employment status were never acted upon in the past but in two years when I took over, this is now the status,” she added.

The governor admitted though that managing provincial and district hospitals is quite a challenge, but they are doing their best to further improve and capacitate the facilities and workers.

"Since this person who keeps on talking kani bang johnny come lately... but we have been doing our utmost best... It was always a challenge running four provincial hospitals of level 1 but we are now upgrading to level 2,” she said.

Among those who criticized Garcia’s administration was Cebu gubernatorial aspirant and former Tourism secretary Ace Durano.

Durano said the present administration failed to prepare the hospitals for the present COVID-19 pandemic. He also slammed the administration for outsourcing medical workers in its hospitals.