One more sister city extends aid for rebuilding of CCMC

CEBU, Philippines - Another sister city of Cebu City extended funds for the rebuilding of the Cebu City Medical Center (CCMC).

Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama announced yesterday that Kaohsiung City in Taiwan has donated P10,000 US dollars or P460,000.

Kaohsiung became Cebu’s sister city in 1969 and from then on, has received a lot of help, including over a hundred used busses donated to the Cebu City government in 1989.

Earlier, two sister cities of Cebu, Haarlemmermeer in Netherlands and Xiamen in China, raised funds for the new medical facility to be constructed at the corner of Panganiban street and N. Bacalso Avenue.

Xiamen donated ¥100,000 or P600,000 to the city while Haarlemmermeer, through HDC media, a publishing house that publishes several newspapers in Netherlands, has already started raising funds for CCMC.

Xiamen became Cebu’s sister city by virtue of an agreement signed in October 26, 1984 during the term of then mayor Florentino Solon.

On Wednesday, Rama received donations amounting to $1,000 from Dallas, USA; P700,000 from two Chinese nationals; and P50,000 from private individuals, all intended for the reconstruction of the city hospital.

The CCMC has been declared unfit for occupancy by the city’s structural engineers following the 7.2 magnitude earthquake that damaged the facility last October 15, 2013.

Rama said the city cannot solely depend on the “Piso Mo Hospital Ko” fund drive which has now collected over P10 million after it was launched last October 22, 2013.

Earlier this month, the Cebu City council approved the reconstruction site of the hospital on its current location along N. Bacalso Ave. with a 500-square meter lot.

Initially, the city government was eyeing on the construction of a 1000-bed capacity hospital at the South Road Properties (SRP). But the plan was halted due to the policy of the Department of Health (DOH), disallowing government hospitals to be built near bodies of water. The approval for a site of a new government hospital includes an accreditation from DOH and PhilHealth. —/ATO (FREEMAN)