BONG GO AIDS FIRE VICTIMS AND STRUGGLING RESIDENTS IN BACOLOD CITY

Senator Christopher “Bong” Go’s outreach team mounted relief operations on Wednesday, March 29, to aid struggling residents and fire victims in Bacolod City in Negros Occidental.

Go’s staff held the distributions at the Liga ng mga Barangay Building and Abang Lingkod Headquarters in Villa Lucasan where they provided relief to a total of 136 residents. They handed out masks and snacks and gave select individuals computer tablets, shoes, bicycles, and balls for basketball and volleyball. In addition, the fire victims received grocery packs.

On the other hand, a team from the Department of Social Welfare and Development extended financial assistance to help the residents.

In his video message, Go reminded the beneficiaries to make health their top priority as he encouraged them to visit Corazon Locsin Montelibano Memorial Regional Hospital in the city should they need to avail medical assistance from the government.

Principally authored and sponsored by Go, Republic Act No. 11463 or the Malasakit Centers Act of 2019, mandates the establishment of such centers in every Department of Health-run hospital nationwide and in the Philippine General Hospital in Manila.

Other public hospitals can also establish their own Malasakit Centers provided they meet the standard set of criteria and guarantee the sustainability of the center’s operations.

As of writing, 157 Malasakit Centers nationwide have helped more than seven million Filipinos, according to the DOH.

Go, who serves as Vice Chair of the Senate Committee on Finance, also supported several projects, including the construction of an infectious disease wing in Teresita L. Jalandoni Provincial Hospital (TLJPH) in Silay City; road rehabilitation in Talisay City, Bago City, Bacolod City, Ilog, Moises Padilla, Pontevedra, Pulupandan, San Carlos City and Toboso; construction of drainage canals in Enrique B. Magalona and San Carlos City; and the construction of buildings in Don Salvador Benedicto, Calatrava, Himamaylan City, Valladolid and Victorias City.

Go has likewise successfully pushed for the enactment of a measure that shall establish the Bacolod City General Hospital. The bill was signed into law by former president Rodrigo Duterte in 2021.

Meanwhile, Go also continues to bring government medical services closer to the grassroots as he advocated for the establishment of Super Health Centers in various parts of the country.

Through the collective efforts of fellow lawmakers, sufficient funds had been allocated under the Health Facilities Enhancement Program of the DOH for 307 Super Health Centers in 2022 and 322 in 2023. DOH, the lead implementing agency, identifies the strategic areas where they will be constructed.

In the province of Negros Occidental, Super Health Centers will be constructed in the cities of Bago, Cadiz, Himamaylan, San Carlos, and Talisay, and in the town of Cauayan which were funded in 2022.

This year, more such centers were funded for the cities of Sagay, Silay, Sipalay, and Victorias; and in the towns of Binalbagan, Calatrava, Cauayan, Isabela, Moises Padilla, Pontevedra, Pulupandan, San Enrique, Toboso, and Villadolid. Additional Super Health Centers will also be established in the cities of Cadiz, Talisay, and San Carlos.

“Alam ko pong napakahirap ng panahon ngayon pero tandaan po natin na ang pera po ay kinikita, ang gamit po ay nabibili, pero ang pera na kikitain ay hindi po nabibili ang buhay. A lost life is a lost life forever. Kaya mag-ingat po tayo palagi,” underscored Go.

“Asahan niyo po na patuloy ang aking suporta at pagseserbisyo sa inyo. Dahil kapag nakikita po namin kayong nakangiti ay masaya na rin po ako. Dahil para sa amin, ang serbisyo sa tao ay serbisyo ‘yan sa Diyos. Maraming salamat rin po. Magtulungan lang po tayo,” he ended.

On February 10, Go witnessed the groundbreaking for the Super Health Center and assisted indigents in San Carlos City in the province. On the same day, he also went to Don Salvador Benedicto where he personally joined in the celebration of the 40th Kali-Kalihan Festival.