1st phase of new Bogo hospital to be done this year
The phase one of the P230-million hospital project in Bogo City in northern Cebu is set to be completed this year, according to the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) in Central Visayas.
The big-ticket project, which covers the construction of four new buildings inside the Severo Verallo Memorial District Hospital compound, will be done in two phases.
The first phase of the project, which is building one, costs P70 million. The second phase, on the other hand, includes the construction of three other buildings amounting to P160 million.
Of the total allotted budget, P200 million came from the Senate while the remaining P30 million was sourced from the Department of Health.
The Capitol was able to secure P200 million from the Senate after Fourth District Provincial Board Member Horacio Franco and Provincial Health Office Chief Dr. Rene Catan requested Senator Risa Hontiveros, former Senate Committee on Health chairperson, for additional hospital funding.
DPWH bidded out the project's phase one and awarded it to the contractor, Ascentia Construction Inc.
Engineer Aylen del Mar of DPWH-7 said the bidding for the project's second phase will start in the middle of the year.
The footing or the groundwork of the project already started in December 2017, but the groundbreaking ceremony led by Hontiveros was only held yesterday.
"The hospital we are starting to construct today is the product of a genuine partnership between the local and national governments and their true commitment to community's health and welfare,” said Hontiveros during her speech.
Hontiveros said she has been supporting the provincial government's proposal to upgrade the infrastructure of the hospital.
Vice Governor Agnes Magpale recalled that the Bogo City's provincial hospital was also constructed with the help of senators, saying “this is a repeat of history.” "Let's fill it (new buildings) up with committed people," she said after the ceremonial groundbreaking.
Once finished, the hospital's bed capacity will be upgraded to 200 from 60.
The upgrade is aimed at meeting the growing medical needs of the city, as well as of its neighboring municipalities in the north.