Sulu inaugurates new hospital

ZAMBOANGA CITY – The municipal government of Maimbung town in the southern Philippine province of Sulu has inaugurated a new hospital after decades of waiting for funding to complete the facilities that will serve tens of thousands of patients from neighboring towns.

Photos released by the Maimbung government show the April 27 inauguration of the two-storey, 25-bedding district hospital in the town. (Mindanao Examiner)

The two storey, 25 beddings, have medical equipment and emergency facilities, according to Provincial Administrator Erwin Tan.  

“This is a level two hospital and we are still working to acquire more medical equipment, and bed capacity but building this hospital is already a milestone since this had been planned a long time ago by our governor, Sakur Tan, during the previous administration of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, and it was only now that this has finally materialized,” he told The Mindanao Examiner Regional Newspaper by phone from his office in the Capitol.

 

The hospital is under the Sulu Provincial Integrated Hospital headed by Doctor Farah Omar, who is a key figure in the modernization of the hospital in the capital town of Jolo. “The completion of the construction project is P25 million and the procurement of equipment is still ongoing. Hindi pa complete but we will, to meet regulations and licensing requirement,” she said in a separate interview.

The funding for the hospital, according to Admnistrator Tan, was sourced from the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) and the Sulu provincial government. It will serve residents from the neighboring and island towns of Pangutran, Tapul, Pandami, Panglima Estino, and even constituents in Luuk.

 

Maimbung, just 12 kilometers from Jolo town, has over 50,000 residents and the town is one of the most peaceful and progressive municipalities in the province due to its infrastructure projects and various peace and development programs initiated by its hardworking Mayor Shihla Hayudini who had been collaborating closely with the provincial government.

 

The local government said current works still being done in the hospital are the concrete fencing, among others. 

“It was a day that will be marked as a milestone in the history of Maimbung. After a long wait, coupled with years of political wranglings, specifically between Governor Sakur Tan and the then ARMM, the day witnessed the birth of Maimbung District Hospital on April 27, 2023 with corresponding staffing. It can be said that the Gov. Tan did all that could be done for the hospital to stand proudly. Like the adage, all's well that ends well, Alhamdulillah!,” the Maimbung municipal government said.

 

The April 27 inauguration was attended by Mayor Hayudini, Doctor Omar, and Administrator Tan Doctor Rizaldy Piang, BARMM Minister of Health; Director Dominador Gonzales, of the BARMM Civil Service Commission; municipal mayors and councilors and other stakeholders.

 

Mayor Hayudini said her town will be more resilient than it was in the past and she also acknowledged and commended those who contributed to the success of the occasion especially to Governor Tan, Doctors Omar and Piang.

 

Maimbung, the seat of the Sultanate of Sulu, is now far from what it was a decade ago under the previous administration of Mayor Najib Maldisa where the road leading to the town was gated with barb wire and roads were dilapidated with no visible infrastructure except for a dilapidated school and an old mosque.

 

At present, local tourists flock to the town to enjoy its pristine coast, fresh seafood and dozens of restaurants, and even Savoury built its largest restaurant in Maimbung. New schools and mosques and wide roads with solar power street lights lined up the highway leading to the historical town. A huge children’s playground was also built in front of the municipal hall and the town now has an Internet access, and a jetty port.

 

Plans are also on the table for the construction of a modern airport in the town that will complement the Jolo domestic airport, according to Governor Tan.

 

“We have so many plans here right now, and not only in Maimbung but elsewhere in the province as we are now reaping the hard work we put in our peace and development projects and we would like to thank former President Rodrigo Duterte and President Ferdinand Marcos Jr for their strong support to Sulu and its people,” said Governor Tan, who is a strong supporter and close friend to Duterte and Marcos.

He also thanked Senator Bong Go for putting up two Malasakit Centers in Sulu in January and September 2021 - one at the Sulu Integrated Provincial Hospital and the other at the Sulu Sanitarium. (Mindanao Examiner)