Wednesday, October 26, 2005
SRP leaves City ‘a bit tight’
By Gingging A. Campaña
Sun.Star Staff Reporter
Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña dismissed reports of low regular revenue collections so far, but admitted that the City is “a little tight” because of the P600-million payment for the South Reclamation Project (SRP) loan this year.
“Why? Did we run out of gasoline?” was his response to the report of the council committee on budget and finance, published in local dailies last Sunday.
But he also said he will ask Acting City Treasurer Tessie Camarillo to explain the report that Councilor Jocelyn Pesquera read to the council last Wednesday.
The good news: collection of garbage fees reached close to P40 million as of July 31 this year, compared to a target of P9.5 million.
In contrast, the City Treasury Office collected only P13 million in real property tax, or some 31.08 percent of the P43-million target for this year.
The treasurer’s office failed to meet about 54 percent of the total targeted revenues for the first seven months this year.
City Hall is under pressure to earn, after it pegged its budget for next year at P2.56 billion.
Payments and fees for the SRP loan will eat up about P775 million of the annual budget.
Pesquera, head of the committee on budget and finance, reported that the treasurer’s office only collected P1.05 billion of the P2.29-billion revenue target as of July 2005.
The City did not hit its target for real property tax, but was able to collect 89.5 percent of the P350-million target for business taxes.
Relying on a “skin-and-bones” annual budget that carries recurring items in the two previous years’ budget, the local finance committee proposed a P2.56-billion annual budget for 2006.
The mayor’s office will be operating on P103.4 million next year, P3.3 million higher than this year’s budget and P38 million higher than its P65-million budget for 2004.
Osmeña will have P45.7 million or an increase of P2.8 million for the salaries, bonuses and cash gifts for casual and regular employees under his office.
The local finance committee also proposed a P2.5-million increase for the mayor’s consultancy services for 2006, from P3.2 million this year.
Osmeña, however, reduced by P487,710 his extraordinary expenses, which used to be named the mayor’s discretionary fund.
For 2006, he will have P3.52 million in extraordinary expenses, P86,625 in housing allowance, P650,000 for his local travels and P200,000 for trips abroad.
Vice Mayor Michael Rama will have a total budget of P3 million next year, with P200,000 for local travels and P100,000 for trips abroad.
The offices of the councilors will rely on a P32.2-million budget, with P1.48 million for local travels and P800,000 for trips outside the country.
The councilors will have a P1.94-million budget for consultancy services.
The council secretariat, for its part, will be allocated P11.22 million in personnel services, traveling allowances, advertising expenses, maintenance and other operating expenses and miscellaneous expenses.
(October 26, 2005 issue)
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