WITH only a few weeks remaining in their term, the Cebu City Council is grappling with a significant backlog of pending ordinances. Many of these are expected to lapse and restart from “zero” with the assumption of the new council on June 30, 2025.
Majority Floor Leader Councilor Jocelyn Pesquera said in an interview on Monday, June 16, that there are a number of ordinances the council has yet to approve. She outlined a busy schedule for the remaining weeks, with about six ordinances slated for discussion this Wednesday and around 10 more undergoing deliberations next week.
She attributed the backlog to the recent elections, which kept councilors preoccupied.
“Daghan-daghan pang pending, nya karon Wednesday for second reading,” Pesquera stated, noting that many ordinances are still pending and will be up for a second reading this Wednesday, June 18. She clarified that ordinances currently in the committee report stage would need to be resubmitted to the incoming councilors and restart the legislative process.
“So far, wala naman kaayo’y bug-at nga ordinances. I think the only bug-at lang ang zoning ordinance,” Pesquera noted, indicating that most pending ordinances are not particularly complex, with the zoning ordinance being the primary exception.
Regarding the deferred zoning ordinance, she expressed her willingness to discuss it with the incoming officials and sponsor it if there’s an interested party in the next council.
She emphasized that any ordinances not approved within their current term would be considered “dead,” meaning the next council would have to initiate them anew.
When it comes to the revision of the zoning ordinance, which she sponsored, Pesquera expressed her willingness to assist whoever sponsors it in the next council. However, she said that she had no one in mind yet to pinpoint as a potential sponsor for the revision.
“I still don’t have any idea to take the cudgel kay it will really take a lot of work. Naa may documents and, I can just go to whoever is willing to sponsor,” Pesquera admitted, acknowledging the extensive work involved in sponsoring a complex ordinance like the zoning revision.
Despite the impending legislative reset for many measures, Pesquera assured constituents that any ordinances the current council manages to pass have undergone thorough deliberations and discussions.
“I can assure our constituents, if ever mapasar namo ang mga ordinances, nga it went through a lot of deliberations and discussions, as well as gitun-an gyud na namo nga if ever ma pasar, it’s for the good of Cebu,” she said.
(I can assure our constituents that if we manage to pass these ordinances, they will have gone through a lot of deliberations and discussions, and we have truly studied them to ensure that if passed, it will be for the good of Cebu.)
On the particular case of the deferred zoning ordinance, Pesquera reiterated that its approval is a matter of established procedure, despite calls from Mayor-elect Nestor Archival for its passage before the end of the current administration.
She highlighted that passing it now would benefit the new administration by eliminating the need for them to restart discussions, saving significant effort.
“Mao na nga it really needs a lot of effort on the part of next council,” she concluded.
However, she added that the zoning ordinance would be tackled and taken care of by the next administration. / JPS