CCMC file photo.
CEBU CITY, Philippines – It has been 10 years since the Cebu City Medical Center (CCMC) was supposed to rise as a beacon of public healthcare in the city. Yet, despite the billions of pesos already spent and numerous promises made, the building remains unfinished.
The public’s trust is fraying as the project lurches from one controversy to another, with no clear end in sight.
On August 15, the Cebu City Council called for an executive session to summon key officials responsible for the project’s completion, only to be met with conflicting reports.
“This representation called this session an offshoot of the privilege speech of Councilor Mary Ann Delos Santos last June 26, 2024, and it is very clear in the speech that the council wants the CCMC completed. Mr. Chairman, it has been 10 years since we started construction in 2014, and yet, it is still not finished,” Minority Leader Councilor Nestor Archival Sr. said in his rationale.
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During the session, Archival sought clarity on whether construction work was truly ongoing at the CCMC, despite the absence of a valid contract following the termination of the agreement with the previous contractor, M.E. Sicat Construction Inc., in November 2022.
CCMC project director, Engineer Robert Varquez, and Department of Engineering and Public Works (DEPW) Acting head, Engineer Lowelle Corminal, provided contradictory statements that only deepened the confusion.
Varquez insisted that no physical construction activities were currently taking place, aside from preparatory work for the last three floors.
“There are no physical activities ongoing as far as the building is concerned, but preparatory work is already in place, like the placement of the tower crane,” Varquez stated.
He added that actual construction for the 8th, 9th, and 10th floors had yet to begin and what was ongoing was the construction of the Operation Smile on the 7th floor.
However, Corminal contradicted this by asserting that Dakay Construction was indeed conducting civil works on-site, despite the absence of a formal bidding process and a Program of Work and Estimates (POWE).
“Based on observation and stickers on-site, it is Dakay,” Corminal said. He also confirmed that civil works were ongoing at CCMC.
READ MORE: COA: CCMC project contract price was ‘bloated’ by P62M
No contract
Councilor Mary Ann Delos Santos pressed Corminal on how these activities could proceed without the necessary legal frameworks.
But Corminal admitted that there was “categorically none” of the required procedures had been followed.
In a separate interview, Archival explained that in government projects, particularly in Cebu City, a contract must undergo a transparent process. This begins with the preparation of the POWE, detailing the project’s scope and budget, which is then submitted to the City Council for approval.
Once approved, a public bidding process is conducted to select a contractor. The contract, incorporating the POWE, is then signed, followed by project implementation. Thus, any work done without an approved POWE and contract undermines the integrity of the procurement process.
P205M donation to finish CCMC
Moreover, a donation drive initiated to fund the completion of the CCMC has so far accumulated P205 million, as reported by Dr. Peter Mancao, CCMC chief and president of the Cebu Medical Society.
However, he disclosed that the funds remain untouched due to the ongoing finalization of a trust fund agreement. He clarified that the funds would only be released once an agreement would be finalized between the Cebu Medical Society (CMS), the private donors, and the Cebu City government.
Mancao further noted that having the private donations directly managed by CMS was intended to enhance transparency in the disbursement process.
These private donations are earmarked for the construction of the structural framework of the eighth to tenth floors of the CCMC.
The Cebu Medical Society (CMS), responsible for managing the funds, faced criticism from Delos Santos for bypassing the City Treasurer’s Office, in violation of City Ordinance 2439. This ordinance outlines the proper procedures for accepting and documenting donations, ensuring all transactions, including receipts, are fully accounted for.
She flagged CMS for lack of transparency and noted that the CMS received the funds directly, rather than through the city’s treasurer, questioning the oversight and management of these donations.
READ MORE: Rama wants to finish CCMC reconstruction without a ‘single centavo’ spent from City Hall coffers
Rama’s P1B in pledges from private donors
Delos Santos also questioned the whereabouts of the P1 billion in pledges from private donors, announced by now-suspended Mayor Michael Rama in December 2023.
Rama had declared that the completion of the CCMC’s eighth, ninth, and tenth floors would be financed entirely through these private pledges, without the use of public funds.
However, there has been a lack of transparency and accountability regarding the actual status and use of these pledged funds, which were intended to complete the final floors of the hospital.
P1.1B in total spent on CCMC
Meanwhile, the DEPW reported a total of P1.138 billion had already been spent on various phases of construction at the CCMC.
He outlined that the construction has gone through at least five phases since 2014: Phase 1 cost P566 million, Phase 1.1 was P36 million, Phase 2 amounted to P299 million, Phase 3 required P99 million, and P136 million has been disbursed so far from the P916 million allocated for Phase 4.