APART from the Cebu Provincial Government turning 450 years old, some of its employees might have another reason to celebrate.
Their anniversary bonus worth P5.28 million was among the items covered by the first supplemental budget amounting to P1.38 billion.
It was approved by the Cebu Provincial Board on Monday, Aug. 5, 2019.
“I’ve said before that I will no longer give big, fat bonuses. It did not mean that I will not be giving any bonus. But you see, it’s not mine to give. It depends on the budget, which came from the people,” said Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia on Wednesday, Aug. 7.
But once the funds for the anniversary incentive are downloaded, Garcia said she will forgo any special announcements and speeches on the matter as she wants the bonus to be distributed directly to the recipients.
The Provincial Human Resource Management Office has yet to finalize the number of recipients.
Only those employees who have rendered at least one year of service to the Provincial Government as of Aug. 6, 2019 are qualified to receive the anniversary bonus.
Provincial Budget Officer Emme Gingoyon said qualified recipients will receive an anniversary incentive of “not more than P3,000” subject to the governor’s issuance of a memorandum on the matter.
Dated March 3, 1997, Local Budget Circular 65 of the Department of Budget and Management provides the guidelines on the granting of an anniversary bonus in the local government.
Item 4.3 of the circular’s rules and regulations states: “The anniversary bonus herein authorized shall be granted only during milestone years which refers to the 15th anniversary and to every fifth year thereafter of the founding of the local government unit.”
Item 4.3.1 further provides that “officials and employees may be granted anniversary bonus only if the LGU where they are employed has been in existence for at least 15 years and has not yet granted any anniversary bonus prior to the effectivity of Executive Order 316, and have rendered at least one year service in the same LGU as of the date of the milestone year.”
In 2018, around 1,500 regular and casual employees received a P15,000 anniversary incentive from the administration of former governor and now Vice Gov. Hilario Davide III during the Capitol’s 449th founding anniversary celebration.
Davide, at the time, cited several accolades the Province received as basis for giving the anniversary incentive, including the Capitol’s third Seal of Good Local Governance award in 2017, the 2017 Gawad Kalasag Award from the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council and the recent Bronze Award from the Civil Service Commission. (RTF)