Archival vows to finish CCMC within one year

Local

CEBU City Mayor-elect Nestor Archival Sr., with Vice Mayor-elect Tomas Osmeña, pledged to complete the long-delayed Cebu City Medical Center (CCMC) within one year of their administration.

“Twelve years ago, nag-start ang CCMC and together with two hospitals. Nahuman na ang duha, pero ang CCMC wa pa gyud mahuman,” Archival said during a news forum.

“I promise with Tommy Osmeña and the rest of the team that we will finish CCMC—maximum of one year—so that we can give healthcare and hospitalization benefits sa atong mga katawhan,” he added.

Archival emphasized that their primary goal is to make healthcare and hospitalization free for Cebu City’s residents, especially the underprivileged.

“That’s the main goal,” he said.

But the road to finishing the CCMC remains riddled with administrative and logistical issues.

Archival said one of the first steps of his administration is to conduct a construction audit to determine the status of the project and the responsibilities of each contractor involved.

“This is the one we are trying to look into because we don’t really know kinsa gyud klaro nga contractor,” he said.

“As what I have understood, there are four contractors. We need to clear it out with the consultants or designers kung kinsa man gyud ang responsible if ever there would be issues in construction—whether structural, electrical—so that we can have a construction audit and know what needs to be done,” he added.

Previously, Archival also stated that the city government will not undertake the construction on its own, citing past inefficiencies.

He noted how the CCMC project, which started in 2012, remains incomplete despite the simultaneous construction of two private hospitals in Mandaue City, which were both finished in two years.

“Sige tag himog project walay katapusan. Klaro nga indication that we don’t have the capacity to do a hospital nga kitay mu-build,” he said.

For his part, Osmeña expressed support for the proposal of former Congressman Bebot Abellanosa to turn over the CCMC project to the national government, citing years of delays and ballooning costs.

He said that while the Marcelo Fernan Bridge was built for P2.2 billion, CCMC has already consumed over P3 billion without reaching completion.

“CCMC is a joke—a very sad joke on the expense of the people,” Osmeña told reporters, adding that the structure is built on the road and therefore may be illegal.

“Nestor has to solve that… I’m not looking into the details, it’s up to him,” he said.

While Osmeña expressed skepticism about CCMC becoming the “best hospital” in the city, he said the government should instead focus on delivering standard and essential health services without competing with private healthcare institutions.

“That’s a wrong approach. The role of the government is to provide service in the regular hospital. Don’t be better than them because everybody will come over to you. We have to apply and spend money as wise as possible,” Osmeña said.(TGP)