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Thursday, June 22, 2006
No breakdown but council gives go
By Gingging A. Campaña
Sun.Star Staff Reporter
Despite the local finance committee’s failure to present a breakdown of the P20-million miscellaneous funds for the Asean summit in December, the Cebu City Council yesterday approved the proposed P222-million second supplemental budget this year.
However, most of the proposed purchases in the ordinance covering the additional budget bear with it the precautionary clause, “subject to an enabling resolution or subject to an enabling memorandum of agreement.”
For instance, during the budget hearing last Tuesday, the council sought from the local finance committee details of the P20-million miscellaneous expense for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) summit.
The committee said there was no breakdown given yet.
Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña, however, earlier said this will be used to entertain foreign media during the summit, so they will help promote Cebu in other countries.
Also, a question was raised on the propriety of buying 15 “garbage tricycles,” because tricycles are banned from plying main thoroughfares of the city.
For trash
Most of the councilors thought that the vehicles will be used to collect trash from areas not accessible to big garbage trucks.
Councilor Edwin Jagmoc, head of the committee on public services, said the tricycles are intended to pick up garbage accumulated by street sweepers.
The P1.5-million budget for the tricycles was later approved during the deliberation yesterday, when Councilor Gerardo Carillo suggested that this be amended to garbage collection units.
When a resolution is submitted for discussion to support the purchase, the council will just decide whether to pursue buying tricycles later.
The body wanted to make sure that before any purchase is made, the legality of operating these units is addressed, said a report from the committee on budget and finance.
Councilor Hilario Davide III was also concerned about unfinished projects in the barangays and asked whether there will be a third supplemental budget.
Cooling
The local finance committee said “as long as there will be sources of funds, and the corresponding need for appropriations, there is always the possibility” of a third supplemental budget.
Another concern raised during the hearing was the proposed purchase of P5 million worth of window-type air-conditioning units.
Councilor Christopher Alix explained that his request was only for the purchase of some air-conditioning units, but Mayor Osmeña wanted to buy the units in bulk for all departments, so it will be cheaper.
Councilor Augustus Pe Jr., for his part, said the mayor wants to buy a cooling system for the entire City Hall.
The system, which is being established by a group of retired US Navy personnel, will help the City save 25 percent in electricity consumption.
Supporting the supplemental budget are additional realized income, realignment from current appropriations, retained operating surplus and transfer from trust fund accounts.
Section 4 of the ordinance provides that P89.5 million of the fund source is the monetized Internal Revenue Allotment program of the Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP).
The Department of Budget and Management had placed under a monetization scheme the IRA balances of local government units (LGUs) that were not released on time.
This means that instead of releasing the balances in full, the LGUs could only get them in seven yearly installments, from 2007 to 2013.
In Cebu City’s case, its P89.45-million share (P39,115,631 for 2000 and P50,341,130 for 2001) is supposed to be spread out in seven years, at P12.77 million yearly from May 2007 to 2013.
However, LBP offered another scheme that would allow the release of the entire P89.45 million at one time, if the City will pay P32 million in interests to the bank. This will be paid in the next seven years at a nine percent diminishing balance.
For Bisaya stories from Cebu. Click here. (June 22, 2006 issue)
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