Lot donation for Bacolod City hospital under negotiation

By Nanette Guadalquiver

December 3, 2021, 4:40 pm

<p><strong>HOSPITAL DESIGN</strong>. A design perspective of the Bacolod City General Hospital. A property in Barangay Vista Alegre is being considered as the site of the hospital, said Lone District Rep. Greg Gasataya on Friday (Dec. 3, 2021). <em>(Image courtesy of the Office of Lone District Rep. Greg Gasataya)</em></p>

HOSPITAL DESIGN. A design perspective of the Bacolod City General Hospital. A property in Barangay Vista Alegre is being considered as the site of the hospital, said Lone District Rep. Greg Gasataya on Friday (Dec. 3, 2021). (Image courtesy of the Office of Lone District Rep. Greg Gasataya)

BACOLOD CITY – A property in Barangay Vista Alegre is being considered as the site of the Bacolod City General Hospital, which will be established under Republic Act (RA) 11564 signed by President Rodrigo Duterte last June 24.

As of Friday, efforts to finalize the negotiations are ongoing as Lone District Rep. Greg Gasataya, who authored the city hospital bill in Congress, said he has been furnished a copy of the draft deed of donation by City Legal Officer Joselito Bayatan.

“The donors have been communicating with me since early this year. I hope all these paper works will already be completed, including the documents requested by the Department of Health,” the lawmaker told reporters.

Gasataya said the city has asked that the lot donation be made to the local government unit to which he agreed.

“It’s fine with me. What is important is there is a donation from the private sector, a corporation, or a family,” he said.

Last week, Mayor Evelio Leonardia said the health department has been in touch with the city government regarding the details of the hospital project.

He added that Bayatan has been working on a possible site that would be big enough not only to accommodate the new hospital, but also the City Health Office (CHO).

“We want to see a medical complex. You have the hospital and the CHO that needs to be transferred,” the mayor said.

In November, Gasataya virtually met with DOH-Western Visayas regional director Adriano Suba-an and two engineers for an initial assessment of the schematic plan for the construction of the hospital starting next year.

A fund of PHP250 million has been allocated for the building as included in the proposal for next year’s national budget.

Gasataya authored House Bill 6731 on the establishment of the Bacolod City General Hospital while Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri, who traces his roots to Bacolod City and Negros Occidental, sponsored the counterpart Senate Bill 1647.

"The project is very important, and (it) should transcend politics. It is for the people of Bacolod City regardless of political color. The most important thing is we can deliver this project which we have been pushing since 2018 in Congress,” Gasataya said. (PNA)


Comments