DESPITE the scrutiny of the Cebu City Council, the executive department is determined to rebid the P700 million in savings to complete the Cebu City Medical Center (CCMC).
Acting Mayor Raymond Alvin Garcia said in a press conference on Monday, August 19, that the executive department has already submitted all supporting documents and presentations to the City Council to appraise the councilors on the civil works for the city-owned public hospital.
“I mean nangayo na sila og presentation, nangayo na sila og breakdown, and no less than ang City Engineer kay nihatag na og presentation kung pila na ang nagasto, and atung si Dr. Peter Mancao (CCMC Medical Officer) was also there to give a presentation. And even Engr. Bo (Roberto Varquez) was there."
Acting Cebu City Mayor Raymond Alvin Garcia
He added, “I think nahatagan na gyud nato og enough information ang atung Cebu City Council.”
Garcia insisted that the CCMC’s construction must be finished as soon as possible for the benefit of the Cebu City residents.
He added that the rebidding will proceed, and he is hoping that it will be bid out this August.
“I will ask the BAC (Bids and Awards Committee) chairman kung unsa na ang status,” Garcia said, adding that the bidding process may take time.
When asked if the rebidding of the P700 million needs the city council’s approval, Garcia said in a follow-up interview that he has to refer the matter to the City Legal Office for legal opinion.
If the City Legal’s opinion says that they are allowed to bid, then they will proceed with the process, however, if not, they will lobby the proposal with the City Council for approval.
Garcia said that the P700 million was the remainder, or savings, from the terminated P1 billion contract back in 2022, which was part of the funding appropriation in 2020 for the completion of the CCMC.
Back in November 2022, the Cebu City Government terminated its contract with M.E. Sicat Construction for the construction delay.
In last Thursday’s Executive Session, Aug. 15, the Cebu City Council scrutinized the alleged ongoing activities at the CCMC without contract, the lack of a tripartite agreement between the Cebu Medical Society (CMS), the private donors, and the Cebu City Government over the disbursement of the P205 million worth of private donations and the lack of concrete planning to finish the public health facility.
City Councilor Mary Ann de los Santos, during the executive session, urged Garcia and the Department of Engineering and Public Works (DEPW) anew to first defer the bidding process for the P700 million, pending a clear threshold as to the scope of all civil works in the completion of the CCMC to be presented to the council.
Garcia said that the ongoing construction at the CCMC is only civil works on the seventh floor under Operation Smile, adding that he was not aware of who was the contractor for the non-profit international medical organization.
The Cebu City Government partnered with Operation Smile to open up the Cebu Comprehensive Cleft Care Center of Excellence on the whole seventh floor.
Under their agreement, the non-profit international medical organization will shoulder the expenses of finishing the seventh floor.
Moreover, Garcia said that he has already tasked CCMC Assistant Administrator Mary Rose Lubino with expediting the creation of the tripartite agreement.
Mancao, during the executive session last Thursday, told the councilors that around P205 million in private donations were downloaded to the Cebu Medical Society (CMS) and to be used for the construction of the structure framework of the CCMC’s eighth to 10th floors.
This was part of the P1 billion pledges from the private sector that Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama sought out last year from the private sector in Metro Manila to finish the CCMC.
Dakay Construction Development Corp. was selected by private donors to handle the civil works on the CCMC’s three floors.
CCMC’s last three floors will house more ward rooms, which will increase its bed capacity.
The City Council questioned Dakay Construction as to why it has ongoing civil work activities at the CCMC despite no contract awarded to them and the lack of a tripartite agreement.
The lack of tripartite constitutes a potential legal violation of the guidelines for receiving donations from the private sector.
Rama, who is serving a six-month preventive suspension, has earlier urged the City Council to help expedite the completion of the CCMC, which includes recognizing the aid coming from the private sector. / EHP