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Torres to Mangloña: Use remaining term to fund CHCC, CUC
Gov. Ralph DLG Torres has urged Sen. Paul A. Manglona (Ind-Rota) to use his remaining term in office to advocate for giving more funding to the Commonwealth Healthcare Corp. and the Commonwealth Utilities Corp.
When asked for comments during his radio briefing last Friday about Manglona’s statements on CUC disconnecting CHCC’s power, Torres said the senator doesn’t know the inside of what has been going on with both CHCC and CUC.
“Since he is a senator for over 30 years, I’d like to also ask him: What can he do? And what should he be doing to safeguard during [the] budget [process]?” the governor said.
If Manglona is going to try to pinpoint and do the blame game, Torres said he wishes the senator would have done more appropriation as well in the last 30 years.
Torres said he believes that this was the first time that both CHCC and CUC boards sat down to address their arrears.
Last Sept. 9, Manglona wrote Torres to say that having the hospital running on emergency generator power for six hours daily after CUC disconnected its power supply to CHCC for non-payment of bills is dangerous as hospital patients are potentially at risk.
Manglona said that CHCC’s emergency generator operation’s capability and emergency fuel supply are being significantly compromised. “It is very alarming that during this unprecedented crisis, the first victim from our government financial belt-tightening is our hospital,” he said.
Manglona asked Torres to immediately address this financial fiasco with CHCC and CUC.
Manglona noted that CUC did the disconnection last Sept. 8, four days after Torres assured the public that there will be no reduction in power supply to CHCC.
