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The town of Pamplona in Negros Oriental formally inaugurated the 32-unit isolation facility worth Php 25.4 million late last year. This project is a result of partnership with the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), through the Kapit-Bisig Laban sa Kahirapan Comprehensive and Integrated Delivery of Social Services (KALAHI-CIDSS), a community-driven development program that aims to augment the resources of the local government unit in responding to the pandemic and other disasters through people’s participation.

Officials of the Local Government Unit of Pamplona and Province of Negros Oriental, together with DSWD Undersecretary Jerico Francis L. Javier and DSWD Field Office VII Shalaine Marie S. Lucero, during the inauguration of the Municipal Isolation Facility in Pamplona.

Both the province of Negros Oriental and the municipality of Pamplona envisioned that the KALAHI-CIDSS projects of the community volunteers would help them create a public hospital out of the isolation facility that is complete with medical supplies, equipment, and canopies for barangay health stations.

To realize the vision of the local government unit of Pamplona in providing their people access to basic medical care, they entered into a partnership with KALAHI-CIDSS that resulted in community projects.

These physical accomplishments are a product of the participation of volunteers who helped during the implementation of this KALAHI-CIDSS NCDDP Additional Financing project as well as the local counterpart contribution of LGU Pamplona in the form of cash, labor, and the purchase of 232,039 sq. m lot where the isolation facility is situated.

During the inauguration, Negros Oriental Governor Roel R. Degamo and his wife, Pamplona Mayor Janice V. Degamo, DSWD Undersecretary for Operations Group Jerico Francis L. Javier, and DSWD-7 Regional Director Shalaine Marie S. Lucero, led the turnover of the completed sub-projects to the 16 barangay communities that will soon be responsible for the operationalization of the isolation facility.

In a Facebook post by Governor Roel R. Degamo, he said that the “COVID-19 pandemic had previously disrupted our lives and inflicted economic hardships on most of us. Hence, the provincial government is committed to ensuring that Negros Oriental is prepared to combat any future pandemics, and since most of the residents have already been vaccinated, the (KALAHI-CIDSS isolation) facility will be converted into a community hospital.”

He also added that Negros Oriental will ensure that doctors, nurses, and other medical practitioners necessary for the operations of the facility will be provided, including a Php 20 million fund for riprap around the facility to ensure safety and accessibility.

Mayor Janice V. Degamo ensured that the project of DSWD KALAHI-CIDSS would not go to waste. She said, “There is no way that this project will become a white elephant because if this will no longer be used as an isolation facility, we are one step closer to turning this building into an emergency or a community hospital.”

The mayor-governor tandem vows to continue the legacy of the KALAHI-CIDSS in Pamplona, especially the isolation facility, which is set to address public health concerns not just in Pamplona but also in the neighboring towns in the province where there is a lack of access to medical care.

This is the Municipal Isolation Facility of Pamplona, a community project of volunteers from 16 barangays.

Undersecretary Jerico Francis L. Javier, who is also present at the ceremony, emphasized that unity plays a vital role in accomplishing such a huge milestone for the people of Pamplona. “Ang proyektong ito ay halimbawa ng pagkakaisa ng bawat Pilipino. Ang pagkakaisang dala ng maayos na pamamahala ng inyong lokal na pamahalaan at pakikipag-ugnayan sa mga nasasakupan nito. Nakatutok ngayon ang mga proyekto ng KALAHI-CIDSS sa adbokasiya na bawat isa ay kasama sa pag-unlad lalo na ang mga volunteers na mai-angat ang kanilang antas ng pamumuhay (This project is an example of the unity of every Filipino. Unit is brought about the local government unit in partnership with its constituents. KALAHI-CIDSS now focuses on advocacy that enjoins everyone in the development, especially in uplifting the lives of its community volunteers),” Javier enthused.

The successful work of community volunteers paved the way to realize the dream of every Pamplonahon to see that their government is prioritizing their health. The partnership between the LGU Pamplona and DSWD KALAHI-CIDSS is the result of the trust shared by the two institutions to answer the call of their people for improved basic services. ###

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