Former President Ricardo Martinelli is calling for an investigation into the $70 million cost overrun of the Bugaba Hospital due to the project's abandonment. The completion of this hospital brings hope to the local population. It has transformed from dirty, neglected walls, overgrown with trees and vegetation, into a healthcare center with 172 inpatient beds, 3 operating rooms, and 27 medical offices, putting an end to the great sacrifices residents had to endure for years by traveling to the district of David for hospital access. The hospital will also house a neonatal unit, intensive care unit, surgical area, and an obstetrics and gynecology department with 3 modular operating rooms and 2 modular delivery rooms. According to Martinelli, this additional figure represents a theft and robbery of the public treasury, as valuable state resources were wasted. Martinelli believes a law should be reintroduced to penalize such situations, similar to the one President Cortizo vetoed in the previous administration. Martinelli recalled that he had put the project out to tender during his term, but it was suspended in 2015 for unknown reasons and was not resumed during Laurentino Cortizo's administration either. The new building for chemotherapy and hemodialysis services will have 15 chairs for hemodialysis and 15 for chemotherapy, along with complementary areas. In October 2020, the then-president vetoed an initiative that added provisions to the penal code regarding the paralysis and deterioration of public works. "The bad thing is that it cost us 70 million more, and during the pandemic, many lives could have been saved," Martinelli said. He also mentioned that the new building will include a pharmacy, laboratory, and radiology department. Martinelli stated he will submit the project for debate with the Realizando Metas caucus deputies to have a regulation that ensures the full weight of the law for these irresponsible individuals. "It would be good to investigate," he emphasized.
