THE Cebu City Council has approved an P81.3 million supplemental budget sourced from over P400 million in savings generated during the third quarter of 2025.
The budget allocates P40.8 million for senior citizens’ financial assistance and P40 million for road paving and repairs, according to city officials.
On Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2025, the City Council approved Supplemental Budget 2 (SB2) amounting to P81,395,000, sourced from the savings, to fund priority programs and projects for the remainder of the year.
The savings were from cutting down what officials described as unnecessary programs across various department offices, including those under the vice mayor and other executive departments.
Based on the appropriation ordinance, the largest share of P40,845,000 was allocated to the Senior Citizens’ Program to cover financial assistance for the last quarter.
Explanation
Councilor Dave Tumulak, chairman of the committee on budget and finance, explained in an interview on Friday, Oct. 3, that the allocation was adjusted upward after the Office for Senior Citizens Affairs (Osca) reported an increase in beneficiaries beginning in the second quarter of 2025.
Another P40 million was set aside for the Department of Engineering and Public Works (DEPW) to carry out paving, asphalting and retreading of various city streets.
He said the projects are part of ongoing efforts to improve road conditions in time for the Christmas season and the Sinulog Festival in January 2026, one of the country’s biggest religious and cultural celebrations.
Meanwhile, the Mayor’s Livelihood Program will receive P550,000 in funding, while part of the budget was also earmarked for the desilting and declogging of city creeks.
The SB2 was prepared by Acting City Budget Officer Roseny Reyes and subsequently approved by Mayor Nestor Archival.
2026 Annual Budget
Tumulak welcomed the passage of the supplemental budget but emphasized that the executive department must now move quickly to submit the proposed 2026 Annual Budget for deliberation by the council.
He said while the City demonstrated its ability to generate savings by trimming down non-essential expenses, financial planning must be laid out early to sustain vital programs and services next year.
Tumulak said the City has demonstrated discipline in managing its finances and reducing unnecessary expenses. He also emphasized the importance of submitting the annual budget on time to ensure that all priority programs, particularly those that directly benefit residents, proceed without delay.
According to Tumulak, the more than P400 million in savings was achieved after the City reviewed and reduced funding for non-priority projects and activities.
These cost-cutting measures, he added, gave the local government flexibility to realign resources toward programs deemed more urgent, such as senior citizens’ financial assistance, road improvement, livelihood support and disaster preparedness initiatives. / CAV