A PROPOSED ordinance aimed at regulating usurious interest rates and check discounting practices among City Hall employees has received strong support from various Cebu City Hall departments.
The legislative measure, authored by Councilor Jocelyn Pesquera, seeks to amend sections 3, 4, and 14 of City Ordinance 2142, also known as the Code of Ethics of Cebu City Employees. The ordinance targets employees allegedly involved in lending money at excessively high interest rates.
Although no concerned parties gave their input during the public hearing in last Wednesday’s regular session, at least 19 departments and agencies have submitted their position papers with some agreeing with the proposed measure while others raised some questions and concerns.
Pesquera first filed the amending ordinance on January 31, 2024. The public hearing was scheduled more than a year later, on Wednesday, May 28, 2025.
In a text message on May 29, Pesquera said that this will not affect the progress of the ordinance.
Such practices raise questions about ethical conduct and potential financial exploitation within the City Hall workforce, she added. The proposed measure seeks to protect City Hall employees from such practices, Pesquera said.
Recommendation
The Barangay Affairs Office, Business Processing and Licensing Office, the City Market Office and Cebu City Nutrition Office have expressed support for the proposed ordinance, viewing it as a safeguard for the city government’s integrity.
The City Assessor’s Office, on the other hand, saw it as a proactive measure against salary delays and a way to promote ethical conduct. The Department of Social Welfare and Services urged the swift implementation of the proposed measure. The City Health Department gave recommendations on the parameters.
“I received calls as well from different offices, Mr. Chair, indicating that they also have a sinking fund to help address the concerns of the employees. But then they just want to be clarified on what is considered as usurious rates,” said Pesquera.
The Department of General Services raised concerns on the validation of lending with usurious rates and check discounting without formal documentation.
The City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office had questions on what constitutes usurious rates.
There was a suggestion to also cover non-plantilla employees and job order workers aside from the casual and regular employees.
Pesquera said project-based and job order personnel are not included and that this may require a separate ordinance.
She added that she plans to review the specific allowable interest rates before the final deliberation to prevent legitimate assistance by employees from being considered a violation.
Rationale
It was believed that the practice was one of the reasons for the delayed salaries of employees, particularly among the job order workers, as some employees handling the payroll processing were reportedly involved in the lending business.
“The rationale of this proposed ordinance is not to stop people from helping a coworker, but to stop the charging of usurious rates. When we say usurious, it’s like interest rates, like what’s happening now, like 20 percent per month or even some 10 percent,” said Pesquera.
“So instead of helping the employee, it will come out as an additional burden on the part of the employee. And then, as they say, if you become an employee of the government, you will not rely on your salary but rely on loans,” said Pesquera.
The proposed ordinance will impose penalties against employees found in violation of the specific provision. These are 10-day suspension for the first offense, 15-day suspension for the second offense, and dismissal from office for the third offense.
Pesquera explained in 2024 that a complainant has to identify the employees involved in the lending business with high interest rates. Those in the lending business will not be penalized automatically unless someone files a complaint, she added.
Pesquera said only those who lend money with high interest rates will be punished. / EHP