The Supreme Court has dismissed the petition assailing the validity of the government’s approval in 2014 of the privatization of the Philippine Orthopedic Center in Quezon City.
In an en banc decision penned by Associate Justice Ramon Paul Hernando, the SC resolved to dismiss the petition neither based on the weakness of the issues presented by those who were challenging the POC’s privatization nor on the government successfully justifying POC’s privatization.
Instead, the high court ruled to dismiss the case for being moot and academic following the withdrawal in 2015 by the Consortium which won the bidding for the privatization, which was considered as a supervening event for the tribunal to junk the petition filed in 2014 by POC indigent patients, nurses and physicians who were joined by some legislators in the case.
“The Court resolves to dismiss the petition for being moot and academic,” the SC stated in its decision promulgated last May 11, 2021 but only posted on the Court’s website last June 30.
The decision came after five years before it could settle the issue after the winning bidder, the consortium of Megawide Construction Corporation and World Citi Medical Center (Consortium), manifested in 2015 that its contract with the government on POC’s privatization had been terminated.
The plan to privatize POC started in 2012. Under the government-approved Modernization of the POC Project (MPOC Project) in 2014, a new hospital facility will be constructed within the National Kidney and Transplant Institute compound along East Avenue, Quezon City.
Under the contract, the Consortium was mandated to provide the government, among other things, a 700-bed capacity specialty care hospital providing orthopedic clinical services and allied services; procurement, installation, operations and management of modem diagnostics and clinical equipment; procurement, installation, operations and management of IT facilities; operation and maintenance of the new hospital facility; and provision of administrative and ancillary services.
After 25 years, the new facility will be turned over by the Consortium to the Department of Health (DOH).
The MPOC Project will be implemented through a Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) arrangement under the provisions of Republic Act No. 6957 as amended by RA 7718, otherwise known as the “Build-Operate-and-Transfer (BOT) Law” and pursuant to the Public Private Partnership (PPP) Program of the government.
On March 6, 2014, a Build-Operate-Transfer Agreement (BOT Agreement) was signed by the DOH with the Consortium of Megawide Construction Corporation and World Citi Medical Center.
However, before the signing of the agreement, a petition was filed with the SC on Feb. 3, 2014 to stop the privatization of POC and the subsequent award of the project to the Consortium.
The petitioners argued that the privatization of the POC would result in the denial of medical services to thousands of indigent Filipinos, which they claimed is a clear violation of their constitutional right to health.
They told the SC that under the POC set-up, 85 per cent of the 700-bed capacity or 562 beds are allotted to non-paying patients.
They lamented that if POC is privatized, only 10 percent of the 700-bed capacity would be for non-paying or service patients who would be denied of expert medical care.
They pointed out that under the law, all government hospitals should operate with not less than 90 percent of its bed capacity for free or as charity beds.
Disputing the allegations in the petition, the public respondents led by the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) and DOH said the MPOC Project is not an abdication but is, in fact, in recognition of the State’s duty to provide and ensure the people’s access to quality hospitals and health care facilities.
The two agencies cited the deteriorating state of the POC like its outdated or broken machines that can no longer accommodate the increasing number of patients and provide quality health care services to them.
On Nov. 10, 2015, the winning Consortium filed with the DOH a “notice of termination” of the agreement.
The Consortium cited various delays committed by the DOH in the implementation of the agreement like the failure to turn over the project site through the issuance of a certificate of possession.
The winning bidder said if the delays in the execution of any of the provisions in the agreement exceed 180 days, it could terminate the agreement without liability.
“This 180-day period came and went over a year ago on Sept. 2, 2014.
Accordingly, the BOT Agreement will terminate on Nov. 15, 2015,” the Consortium informed the DOH.
The “notice of termination” was manifested by the Consortium before the SC on Nov. 27, 2015. It told the SC that the “termination” rendered the petition moot and academic.
“In the case at bar, there is no dispute that the action for certiorari and prohibition filed by petitioners has been mooted by the termination of the BOT Agreement of private respondents (the Consortium and the government).
In its ruling, the SC said: “The staleness of the claims becomes more manifest considering the reliefs sought by petitioners, i.e., to annul and set aside the BOT Agreement for the modernization of the POC; and to permanently enjoin respondents from implementing the MPOC Project, are hinged on the existence of the BOT Agreement.”
“The eventual termination of the BOT Agreement rendered the resolution of the issues relating to the prayers for certiorari and prohibition of no practical or legal effect. Simply stated, petitioners in this case would no longer be entitled to any actual substantial relief regardless of this Court’s disposition on the merits of the present petition,” the tribunal added.
The Supreme Court has dismissed the petition assailing validity and legality of the government’s approval in 2014 of the privatization of the Philippine Orthopedic Center in Quezon City.
In an en banc decision penned by Associate Justice Ramon Paul Hernando, the SC resolved to dismiss the petition neither based on the weakness of the issues presented by those who were challenging the POC’s privatization nor the government successfully justified POC’s privatization.
Instead, the high court ruled to dismiss the case for being moot and academic following the withdrawal in 2015 by the Consortium which won the bidding for the privatization, which was considered as a supervening event for the tribunal to junk the petition filed in 2014 by POC indigent patients, nurses and physicians who were joined by some legislators in the case.
“The Court resolves to dismiss the petition for being moot and academic,” the SC stated in its decision promulgated last May 11, 2021 but only posted on the Court’s website last June 30.
The decision came after five years before it could settle the issue after the winning bidder, the consortium of Megawide Construction Corporation and World Citi Medical Center (Consortium), manifested in 2015 that its contract with the government on POC’s privatization had been terminated.
The plan to privatize POC started in 2012. Under the government-approved Modernization of the POC Project (MPOC Project) in 2014, a new hospital facility will be constructed within the National Kidney and Transplant Institute compound along East Avenue, Quezon City.
Under the contract, the Consortium was mandated to provide the government, among other things, a 700-bed capacity specialty care hospital providing orthopedic clinical services and allied services; procurement, installation, operations and management of modem diagnostics and clinical equipment; procurement, installation, operations and management of IT facilities; operation and maintenance of the new hospital facility; and provision of administrative and ancillary services.
After 25 years, the new facility will be turned over by the Consortium to the Department of Health (DOH).
The MPOC Project will be implemented through a Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) arrangement under the provisions of Republic Act No. 6957 as amended by RA 7718, otherwise known as the “Build-Operate-and-Transfer (BOT) Law” and pursuant to the Public Private Partnership (PPP) Program of the government.
On March 6, 2014, a Build-Operate-Transfer Agreement (BOT Agreement) was signed by the DOH with the Consortium of Megawide Construction Corporation and World Citi Medical Center.
However, before the signing of the agreement, a petition was filed with the SC on Feb. 3, 2014 to stop the privatization of POC and the subsequent award of the project to the Consortium.
The petitioners argued that the privatization of the POC would result in the denial of medical services to thousands of indigent Filipinos, which they claimed is a clear violation of their constitutional right to health.
They told the SC that under the POC set-up, 85 per cent of the 700-bed capacity or 562 beds are allotted to non-paying patients.
They lamented that if POC is privatized, only 10 percent of the 700-bed capacity would be for non-paying or service patients who would be denied of expert medical care.
They pointed out that under the law, all government hospitals should operate with not less than 90 percent of its bed capacity for free or as charity beds.
Disputing the allegations in the petition, the public respondents led by the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) and DOH said the MPOC Project is not an abdication but is, in fact, in recognition of the State’s duty to provide and ensure the people’s access to quality hospitals and health care facilities.
The two agencies cited the deteriorating state of the POC like its outdated or broken machines that can no longer accommodate the increasing number of patients and provide quality health care services to them.
On Nov. 10, 2015, the winning Consortium filed with the DOH a “notice of termination” of the agreement.
The Consortium cited various delays committed by the DOH in the
implementation of the agreement like the failure to turn over the project site through the issuance of a certificate of possession.
The winning bidder said if the delays in the execution of any of the provisions in the agreement exceed 180 days, it could terminate the agreement without liability.
“This 180-day period came and went over a year ago on Sept. 2, 2014. Accordingly, the BOT Agreement will terminate on Nov. 15, 2015,” the Consortium informed the DOH.
The “notice of termination” was manifested by the Consortium before the SC on Nov. 27, 2015. It told the SC that the “termination” rendered the petition moot and academic.
“In the case at bar, there is no dispute that the action for certiorari and prohibition filed by petitioners has been mooted by the termination of the BOT Agreement of private respondents (the Consortium and the government).
In its ruling, the SC said: “The staleness of the claims becomes more manifest considering the reliefs sought by petitioners, i.e., to annul and set aside the BOT Agreement for the modernization of the POC; and to permanently enjoin respondents from implementing the MPOC Project, are hinged on the existence of the BOT Agreement.”
“The eventual termination of the BOT Agreement rendered the resolution of the issues relating to the prayers for certiorari and prohibition of no practical or legal effect. Simply stated, petitioners in this case would no longer be entitled to any actual substantial relief regardless of this Court’s disposition on the merits of the present petition,” the tribunal added.