The local government of Marikina City on Wednesday, Oct. 15, said it will fully fund the construction and completion of the Concepcion Dos Super Health Center after the Department of Health (DOH) flagged it among 297 Super Health Centers (SHCs) nationwide as non-operational and unfinished years after construction began. It released the statement after DOH Sec. Teodoro Herbosa on Wednesday led an inspection of the Marikina SHC and found that the supposed four-story health center remains stuck at Phase 1—a steel foundation now overgrown with weeds and bushes. The city government explained that Phase 1 of the project started in 2023 and was completed in 2024. P21 million was allocated for the first phase, under the Health Facilities Enhancement Program (HFEP), which only covered foundational works. In an earlier statement, Marikina Mayor Maan Teodoro said that the funds provided by the DOH covered only the first phase of the project\'s construction, which the city government had already completed in full, including the foundation and structural works, as certified by the DOH itself. “Wag sanang iligaw ng DOH ang taumbayan sa katotohanan. Kapag nagbigay sila ng pondo, dapat buo na. Kawawa ang tao sa ginagawa ng DOH (DOH should not mislead the public from the truth. When they release funds, they should provide the full amount. The people are the ones who suffer from what the DOH is doing),” she said. “The facts are clear! The funds released by the DOH were only for the first phase of construction. It is therefore false to claim that the entire facility could have been completed with such limited funds,” she stressed. The mayor added that despite repeated follow-ups, the DOH has not released the additional funding needed for the succeeding phases of the project, which caused the delay in completion. In a letter sent to Sec. Herbosa dated October 9, 2025, the city government wrote, “The project commenced in 2023, successfully implemented and completed the Phase 1 works in 2024. Since the completion of Phase 1 in 2024, the City Government has requested the release of funds for the completion of the facility. However, up to this date, no additional funds have been downloaded by the Department.” **media[50804]** The letter also stated, “In view of this, and given the importance of ensuring continuous and accessible healthcare services for our residents, the City Government has decided to proceed with the construction and completion of the facility using locally-sourced funds or our own LGU funds.” “Dahil kailangan ng tao ang serbisyong medikal, kami na ang kusang nagdesisyon mag-allocate ng P200 million budget dito sa aming budget for 2026 (Because people need medical services, we have voluntarily decided to allocate a P200 million budget for this in our 2026 budget),” Teodoro said. “The super health center will not just give basic health services, but also integrate an autism center for people with special needs,” she added. The city government said it had already sent letters to the DOH in 2024 requesting an additional P180 million to complete the four-story Super Health Center, but no funds have been given to date. “To be clear, we have done our part as the local government to complete the first phase of the project in line with the budget provided by the DOH. Ang DOH ang may pagkukulang (It is the DOH that has yet to fulfill its part),” Teodoro stated.