Senator Christopher “Bong” Go, is known for the “Malasakit”, or “Compassionate” Centre, of which there are 163 countrywide, pioneered by him in Davao City in 2018 while he was Duterte’s “special assistant”.
Each centre serves as a one-stop shop by centralising and pooling existing state funding for the medical expenses of indigent patients, thus cutting red tape and time for those who previously had to go from agency to agency begging for help.
Street vendor Dennis Vargas, who is not a fan of Duterte, told This Week in Asia he would vote for Go. Lifting his shirt to show a seven-inch scar across his stomach, Vargas said the Malasakit Centre in a hospital in suburban Quezon City covered the 306,000 pesos (US$5,526) for his month-long stay last November after an emergency operation for a nearly ruptured appendix.
“If not for the Malasakit, I would still be in hospital unable to pay my bills. I will vote for him because he was able to help people like me.”
Taxi driver Ariel Innocencio also told This Week in Asia his vote would be for Go, recalling how the centre was a lifeline when his wife gave birth: “Her hospital bill came to 68,000 pesos and we only paid 5,000 pesos because Malasakit shouldered the rest.
“I don’t care if he stole money. I only care that he was able to help the poor like me,” Innocencio said, adding that the moment Go had become a senator, he immediately worked to set up other centres.
