THE Cebu City Government has cleared the release of P18.75 million in financial assistance for thousands of public school teachers and education workers, reinforcing the City’s effort to provide institutional support to its public education workforce.
Councilor Dave Tumulak, chairman of the committee on budget and finance, who introduced the resolution on the floor during the special session on Friday, Dec. 12, 2025, said the measure was crafted as a form of institutional recognition for educators and school workers, particularly as they continue to face increasing workloads amid limited resources.
He said the assistance is aligned with the City’s planned activities for Teachers’ Day in October 2026, adding that such programs help acknowledge the often unseen work of non-teaching personnel who play a crucial role in school operations.
The motion was seconded by Councilor Philip Zafra. The City Council approved the funding with Acting Vice Mayor Winston Pepito presiding.
The allocation will be sourced from the Local School Board (LSB) and implemented through the Teachers and Non-Teachers Assistance Program under the Office of the Mayor.
The program covers a wide cross-section of education personnel in the city, including 6,533 teaching staff, 200 related teaching personnel, 374 non-teaching employees and 171 job-order workers assigned to public schools.
The assistance is intended to recognize the collective contribution of both teaching and support staff who keep public schools operational.
During the same session, the City Council adopted amendments recommended by the City Budget Office to ensure the proper and timely release of funds.
Following these recommendations, the council revised the title of the resolution to formally authorize the full implementation of the fiscal year 2025 budgetary allocation schedule of release under the LSB.
The amended title, “To authorize the full implementation of the fiscal year 2025 budgetary allocation schedule of release under the Local School Board of the Office of the Mayor,” was approved unanimously after being seconded by Councilor Alvin Arcilla.
Council members said the amendment was necessary to align the measure with existing budgetary and accounting requirements, particularly those governing the utilization of LSB funds.
The approval of the teachers’ assistance program coincided with the council’s continued deliberations on social support initiatives for other sectors.
The LSB, which oversees education-related funding at the city level, is expected to finalize the release schedule once administrative requirements are completed.
Assistance for barangay workers
In the same session, the City Council approved on first reading a proposed ordinance that seeks to provide a one-time P5,000 financial assistance to qualified barangay-based workers.
The proposed measure, titled “An Ordinance Prescribing the Grant of One-Time Cash Assistance to Barangay-Based Workers,” was approved during a special session held on Friday.
The approval came after a motion was introduced by Association of Barangay Councils President and ex officio councilor Franklyn Ong, which was seconded by Councilor Tumulak and subsequently approved by the body.
Following the approval, Ong also moved to refer the proposed ordinance to the committees on budget and finance and on laws for a joint review.
Once enacted, the ordinance will entitle each qualified barangay-based worker to receive a P5,000 cash assistance, with the release scheduled no earlier than Dec. 20.
The measure was referred to the committees on budget and finance and on laws for further evaluation. / CAV