Legarda Urges Gov’t to Donate NHA Land to PCMC

Senator Loren Legarda today urged the National Housing Authority (NHA) to donate to the Philippine Children’s Medical Center (PCMC) the land that the hospital currently occupies.

During the Senate hearing on the issue of ownership of the land currently occupied by PCMC, Legarda said she hopes that the matter would be resolved before the year ends so that the PCMC can focus on expanding its services to benefit more indigent Filipino patients.

“There is nothing in the NHA charter that would prevent it from donating to PCMC the title to the lot on which PCMC facilities now stand. If not on the NHA’s own accord, there are precedent cases of Presidential Proclamations issued to effect lot donations to and from government agencies,” she said.

The PCMC is mandated to provide pediatric care, offer training programs for medical and allied health care providers, and be a center in clinical research. It treats over 70,000 patients annually, most of whom come from poor families.

Since its creation in 1979, the PCMC has been asking the national government to either donate or finance the transfer of the title to the original 63,656-sq-meter (6.3-ha) property the hospital is built on to its name. The title is currently with the NHA.

Meanwhile, Legarda expressed support for the expansion of PCMC’s current facilities and urged the hospital’s officials to submit their “wishlist” to the Senate finance committee. She also hopes that PCMC will soon have a facility in Visayas and Mindanao.

“We want to ensure that the PCMC is given adequate budget for expansion, purchase of equipment and upgrading of facilities so that it can provide the best medical care to our indigent Filipino children,” said Legarda.