THE Mandaue City Council has approved the release of a P5,000 Service Recognition Incentive (SRI) for City Government employees following the completion of administrative guidelines and upon the directive of Mayor Thadeo Jovito “Jonkie” Ouano.
Councilor Joel Seno, chairman of the Committee on Appropriation, Budget, and Finance, explained that the SRI was originally intended to be released together with the Performance Enhancement Incentive (PEI).
However, the release was temporarily held due to the absence of signed guidelines at the time the SRI was prepared.
“That was actually the initial plan to include the PEI with the SRI,” Seno said.
“But when the SRI was being prepared on Monday, December 15, the guidelines for the PEI had not yet been signed.”
Seno clarified that the PEI was not mentioned in Administrative Orders No. 39 and 40, which prompted the City Government to suspend its release until proper authorization was completed.
“It was not stated in both administrative orders, which is why the release of the PEI was held,” he added.
The situation changed after the administrative guidelines were officially signed on December 18, 2025.
However, since the Mandaue City Council had already concluded its final session for the year on December 16, preparations for the PEI may continue into January 2026 if the release cannot be completed before Christmas.
“Since it was signed on December 18 and we already had our last special council session on December 16, preparation may move to January 2026,” Seno said.
“At least by January, employees will receive another benefit.”
Despite this, city officials are making every effort to release the incentive before December 24, in line with Mayor Ouano’s directive to ensure that employees can still use the funds during the Christmas season.
“The instruction of the mayor is clear, whatever is available should be released immediately and not delayed,” Seno said.
“The goal is to release it before December 24, and our accounting office is exerting its best efforts to make that happen.”
The SRI will be given across the board, with each city employee set to receive P5,000. Seno noted that while individual departments undergo annual performance evaluations, the city opted to distribute the incentive equally as a way of recognizing the collective efforts of employees throughout the year.
“This is across the board. Everyone will receive P5000 automatically,” Seno said.
“Each department has its own performance evaluation, but this incentive is one way of recognizing the initiatives and overall performance of our employees for the entire year.”
The City Council approved the SRI on its third and final reading on December 16, following a request from Mayor Ouano.
Seno said the measure was promptly processed after securing the support of fellow councilors.
“We appealed to our fellow councilors to pass this measure upon the request of Mayor Ouano so it can be released immediately to the employees,” he said.
Funding for the SRI will come from the Local Government of Mandaue City, according to Seno.
“The money is from the local government,” he confirmed.
City officials reiterated their commitment to releasing employee benefits as promptly as possible, emphasizing that the incentive is part of the city’s efforts to recognize the hard work and dedication of its workforce, especially during the holiday season. (ABC)