GMA okays P500 million for AFP hospitals

President Arroyo has approved the release of P500 million for the upgrade of military hospitals to boost the morale and further promote the welfare of soldiers, Malacañang said yesterday.

Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita said the Department of Health will be in charge of the program that would modernize and make more efficient the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) hospitals.

Ermita said Mrs. Arroyo wants tertiary hospitals for the AFP that would accommodate more patients and perform major operations on soldiers who need them.

He said the President will make sure the needs of military personnel will be addressed, especially since she is temporarily taking over the Department of National Defense following the resignation of Secretary Avelino Cruz Jr.

AFP chief of staff Hermogenes Esperon Jr. told The STAR that the fund will initially benefit eight regional military hospitals that will be upgraded to tertiary institutions equipped to perform surgery on patients.

These hospitals are located in Davao, Zamboanga, Cebu, Palawan, Central Luzon, Bicol, Camp Nakar in Quezon province, and Cagayan Valley.

"We are thankful to the President for the speedy approval of the funds. Our wounded soldiers don’t have to be flown to V. Luna to get surgery, but they would be taken care of in these hospitals," Esperon said, referring to the V. Luna General Hospital in Quezon City.

He said the whole idea of upgrading these military hospitals is to provide doctors with facilities to do surgery, which would increase the chances of survival for soldiers wounded in battle. — With James Mananghaya