LOCAL government unit (LGU) executives in Eastern Visayas described President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s distribution of patient transport vehicles (PTVs) or ambulances as a lifesaving intervention.
The ambulances will serve as critical links between patients and hospitals in some of the country’s most hard-to-reach communities, the LGU officials said in separate interviews by the Presidential News Desk.
On Monday, President Marcos was in Ormoc City to lead the turnover of 124 PTVs from the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) to LGUs in Eastern Visayas.
Mayor Lemuel P. Honor of Silago, Southern Leyte, described how the ambulances will ease the challenges of his landlocked town. Silago is the largest municipality in the province in terms of land area.
“Kami ‘yung boundary sa Leyte at sa Southern Leyte. At kami ‘yung dinadaanan ng papunta ng Maynila, papunta ng Mindanao,” Honor said.
With its steep, winding highways, Silago’s ambulances are among the busiest in the province, the mayor said, adding that the town’s ambulances also serve patients from neighboring towns.
“It is a big help to us because our ambulances or PTVs, one of the busiest siguro sa Southern Leyte kasi mataas ‘yung highway namin. Based on statistics, 50 to 60 percent ang gamit sa mga locals, and the rest other people…lalo na ang mga neighboring towns, ki-nacater namin,” Honor explained.
Honor said the new unit will be stationed in a mountainous barangay to maximize reach.
From Villaba, Leyte, Mayor Carlos Veloso said poverty and limited resources make the PTVs indispensable.
“Malaking tulong ito dahil marami ang mahihirap sa Villaba, and the poverty level is very high,” Veloso said.
“Tuwing may magkakasakit na taga-bukid, hindi makaya sa ating local na ma-arrange ‘yung pagkuha sa pasyente, ipapahatid lumpo na, hindi makalakad. May emergency cases. Kaya malaking tulong itong PTV ngayon,” Veloso added.
With only two existing ambulances, one of which is unusable, the town of Villaba had to keep its emergency service running 24 hours a day. “Kaya ito, malaking tulong. Needed ito talaga,” the mayor emphasized, expressing gratitude to PCSO and to President Marcos “dahil malaking tulong talaga ito sa aming lungsod.”
Farther north, in Eastern Samar, Maslog Mayor Heraclio Santiago said the PTV program addresses their isolation.
“Kami ang pinakamalayo na munisipyo, nasa gitna kami ng Samar. Itong programang ito, patient transport vehicle, malaking tulong sa munisipyo namin, sa constituents,” Santiago said.
Santiago said that rough roads once made it nearly impossible for patients to reach medical care. “Ang munisipyo ng Maslog ay nagpapasalamat dahil palaging binibigyan kami ng transport vehicle para sa mga constituency namin.”
For Northern Samar Governor Harris Christopher M. Ongchuan, the impact extends across the province.
“Twenty-two municipalities po ang makakatanggap po nitong mga Patient Transport Vehicles from PCSO and of course sa tulong ni President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. Malaking tulong ito, actually matagal na itong request ng ibang mayors,” Ongchuan said.
Some municipalities are first-time recipients while others desperately need replacements for their dilapidated units.
From mountain barangays to coastal roads, LGUs agree that President Marcos’ PTV program is more than just about vehicles. For many families in Eastern Visayas, it is a lifeline for survival.
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