Zamboanga City - - Mayor Celso Lobregat will effect a P200 increase in the monthly honoraria of barangay health workers starting January 2009 as he lauded the commitment and dedication of the volunteer health care givers in performing their duties and responsibilities in their respective villages.

With the increase, the over 400 barangay health workers in the city will receive P500 a month representing a 67 percent increase from the P300 monthly allowance they have been receiving since 2007.

Mayor Lobregat said the increase in the allowances for the volunteer health care givers in the villages is made possible because of the sound fiscal management of the present administration.

The funding for the increase is included in the 2009 budget which was recently approved by the City Council.

Lobregat said he is doing his best to ensure that better and effective health and basic social services are delivered to the residents of the city and one way of which is by raising the allowances of the volunteers.

He said the hike in the workers’ allowance is one way of recognizing their efforts of ensuring the wellbeing of their constituents in the barangays.

Aside from the allowances, the workers also have health insurance benefits which Lobregat started when he was in Congress in 1999 and continued by Cong. Erbie Fabian in since 2004.

City Health Officer Dr. Rodel Agbulos said the health workers assist the CHO personnel in the implementation of health programs, one of which is monitoring cases of Tuberculosis and health condition of pregnant mothers in the barangays.
The health workers were not receiving any allowances before until 2007 during the term of Mayor Lobregat. From 2007 to 2008, the health workers were receiving P300 a month.

“The first three years (2004-2006) of our term was building the foundation and so that starting 2007 we were able to give a P300 monthly allowance to our health workers”, the mayor said.

Aside from the health workers, the mayor has also ordered the increase in the allowances of policemen, firemen, jailguards and personnel from the aviation command from P300 to P500 a month starting January 2009. (Sheila Covarrubias)