Len and Dato Inspects VMMC

Ocular Inspection

Congressman Diosdao “Dato” Arroyo, son of former President and now Pampanga Representative Gloria Macapagal Arroyo,  and Elena Bautista-Horn, Arroyo's spokesperson, conducted an ocular inspection of the Presidential Suite at the Veterans’ Memorial Medical Center. They were also accompanied by the former leader’s doctors from the St. Luke's Medical Center.

Arroyo and Horn arrived at the VMMC past 10:00 a.m. and entered the 150 square meter hospital suite. The two agreed that the room was quite alright but they pointed out a problem with the reclining hospital bed. "It was manual, former President Gloria would have a hard time readjusting the position of the bed. "We would require it to be replaced by an automatic model instead.  Arroyo is very sick already. Do you want her to acquire another illness because of that damn bed?.....W-wait, .....erase that thought,..... the manual bed would be appropriate already".

Horn said Arroyo lawyers would also appeal the ban on the Internet and cellphone. “She is still a congresswoman and needs to work,” Horn said. "...and how do you expect her to update her Facebook status and Twitter tweets  if there would be no Internet access?"

“We appreciate the work being done by VMMC,” Horn said on the preparations made. "Though we would prefer if the hospital Administrators would require the Aquino government to pick up the tab on the hospital expenses. We did not choose this hospital so don't expect us to pay for the accommodations, utility costs and medical expenses. The comfortably luxurious stay at St. Luke's was paid solely by the former President out from her own pocket and didn't cost the government a single centavo."

However, a source at the St. Luke's Medical Center, who asked not to be named for lack of authority to speak on the matter, said the Arroyos actually requested St. Luke' administration to divert the payment of hospital charges, representing room accommodation, utilities (water and electricity), medicines and hospital services, to Arroyo's reserve fund in Congress, which also comes from the country's coffers.