COTABATO CITY – Twenty-five Moro residents in Barangay Gokotan, Malidegao town, to undergo free eye surgeries through the initiative of Bangsamoro parliament member and concurrent Health Minister Kadil Sinolinding Jr.
Local officials said the patients, who suffer from cataract and pterygium, were among the 211 villagers who benefitted from a medical mission on September 30.
The outreach was led by Sinolinding’s office in partnership with the Ministry of Health-BARMM, medics from Deseret Surgimed Hospital in Kabacan, North Cotabato, and peace advocates supporting BARMM’s peacebuilding programs.
During the mission, 62 residents received free reading glasses while more than 90 others — including children, pregnant women, and the elderly — were checked by doctors and given free medicines for common illnesses.
Malidegao Mayor Arnal Timan and Barangay Gokotan chair Jimmy Kusain welcomed the assistance, saying it brought much-needed healthcare access to marginalized families in the town.
Sinolinding, an ophthalmologist who trained in India, is expected to personally oversee the eye surgeries for the 25 patients in the coming weeks.
Malidegao is part of the Bangsamoro Special Geographic Area (SGA), composed of 63 barangays that voted in 2019 to join the autonomous region after separating from their original municipalities in North Cotabato.
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