During its opening on Friday, Senator Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go said the Malasakit Center aims to lighten the burden of Filipinos who need medical assistance by putting all the agencies in the same building.
“Meron na tayong serbisyong mabilis na po sa tulong ni Pangulong Duterte at ni Mayor Inday Sara Duterte, nailagay na po dito sa building na ito yung iba’t-ibang ahensya ng gobyerno para tulungan kayo para wala na kayong babayaran (We now have a faster service through the help of President Duterte and Mayor Inday Sara Duterte. In this building are the different government offices that can help you so that you will not have to pay anything),” he said.
Josephine Mitaran, officer-in-charge of the Malasakit Center, said that the center will house six offices.
These are the Lingap para sa Mahirap, Office of the President, Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office, Philippine Health Insurance Corporation, Department of Social Welfare and Development, the Office of the First Congressional District Representative, and the Botika ng Bayan.
The Lingap and OP desks will operate 24 hours while the rest of the offices open from 8 a. m. to 5 p.m.
Mitaran said the Lingap office services an average of 300 clients per day. “The new building will be more conducive to our clients as compared to our old processing area,” she said.
The Malasakit Center located within the SPMC compound had an allocation of P44 million from the Socio-Civic Fund of the Office of the President.
