P10-M medicine budget of Bataan board scrapped

BALANGA CITY, Bataan — About P10 million in yearly allocations for Bataan provincial board members and department heads for medicine assistance to indigent families will be scrapped this year.

Vice Gov. Benjamin Alonzo told reporters that the P10-million countryside development fund will instead be directly channeled to district hospitals, rural health units and barangay health centers.

This, following allegations that graft and corruption has tainted some medicine procurements, with fat commissions of up to 50 percent in some deals and poor quality medicines and expired antibiotics given to indigents.

While district and rural health units lack medicines, barangay leaders of provincial board members have ample supply and they distribute the drugs without consulting medical officers.

Heads of these health units have complained to Gov. Enri—que Garcia about their lack of vital medicines and equipment, thus hampering their efforts to expand their services to rural communities.

Alonzo said he would closely coordinate with the new provincial board members to devise mechanisms to prevent irregularities during Garcia’s term.