Bridging the accountability gap on 'super health centers'

The controversy over the so-called “super health centers” now scattered across the country reveals the persistent failure of governance that continues to afflict the nation’s health system.

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The Department of Health (DOH) reported to the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) last week that, contrary to claims attributed to the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), many such centers are not yet ready for occupancy. This clash of claims exposes not just poor project coordination but a deeper malaise: the absence of clear accountability in implementing programs that are meant to deliver essential services to the people.

Conceived as part of the government’s effort to bring primary health care closer to the grassroots, these “super health centers” were meant to serve as intermediate facilities between rural health units and provincial hospitals—offering outpatient, diagnostic, and birthing services. Yet, as reports now show, many have turned into ghost structures: padlocked buildings without equipment, personnel, or even utilities. Built on the back of congressional allocations and executed by the DPWH, these projects have been hobbled by the familiar diseases of politicized infrastructure spending, bureaucratic turf wars, and weak oversight.