CEBU City Councilor Raymond Alvin Garcia now holds the most number of committees in the 15th Cebu City Council.
The Council elected new set of officers and chairmanships on July 29, 2020 for the fiscal year 2020-2021.
Garcia chairs the committee on budget and finance, committee on housing, committee on laws, ordinances and styling, and committee on sister cities relations and big brother programs.
Cebu City Vice Mayor Michael Rama used to also chair four committees such as the committees on health, hospital services and sanitation; tourism, arts and culture; sister cities relations and big brother program; and environment and natural resources.
Now, the vice mayor chairs only the committee on health, hospital services and sanitation and the committee on education, science and technology.
Garcia is still the majority floor leader.
Councilor Eduardo Rama Jr. replaced the late councilor Antonio Cuenco as the presiding officer pro tempore.
The set of Council officers now include Councilor Joel Garganera as the second assistant majority floor leader.
Councilors Phillip Zafra, Nestor Archival and Joy Augustus Young remain the first assistant majority floor leader, minority floor leader and assistant minority floor leader, respectively.
Still none of the members of the minority bloc got a chairmanship or membership, except the two ex officio members Association of Barangay Councils President and Kasambagan Barangay Captain Franklyn Ong and Sangguniang Kabataan Federation President Jessica Resch.
Ong holds the committee on barangay affairs while Resch holds the committee on youth and sports development.
Young said they already expected that they will not be given any committee again this year.
“We were not given committees last year also... it’s expected so wala nako nangutana,” said Young.
Eduardo Rama Jr. now holds three committees including social services committee, public services committee and information and communication technology.
Councilor Prisca Niña Mabatid also holds three: committees on labor, employment, cooperative and livelihood; tourism, arts, and culture; and women and family affairs.
Garganera holds the committees on urban planning, environment and natural resources and transportation, communications, energy and other utilities.
Councilor Renato Osmeña Jr. chairs the committees on trade, commerce and entrepreneurship and markets; Councilor Donaldo Hontiveros chairs the committees on scholarship programs and games and amusements; Zafra holds committees on public order, agriculture and rural development and house rules and oversight; and Councilor Jerry Guardo chairs the committee on infrastructure.
Independent Councilor Dave Tumulak, meanwhile, still chairs the committee on disaster risk reduction management, safety and climate change adaptation.
The Council has also created an ad hoc committee to make the detailed rules and procedures now that the session was made online.
The ad hoc committee is composed of Councilors Alvin Dizon, Archival, Garcia, Zafra, as well as Sangguniang Panlungsod (SP) secretary Charisse Piramide.
Archival asked the SP office to create a draft first so that once the ad hoc committee convenes, the framework will only be improved and approved.
Archival focuses on the guidelines for the attendance in doing online sessions.
Meanwhile,former councilor James Anthony Cuenco, has yet to have his official appointment as replacement of his father. (JJL)