After P5M cash advance fiasco: Department heads won't join street décor program

CEBU, Philippines - While they have yet to liquidate the cash advances released to them last December for Christmas street decorations, City Hall Department heads begged off participating in the Christmas street decoration program this year.

In yesterday’s executive session conducted by the City Council where all 22 department heads showed up, Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young asked them if they wanted to be part in the Christmas street decoration program.

“They were unanimously agreed nga dili na sila gusto,” Young said.

The executive session was called by council as the city treasurer was asked to explain the P5-million cash advance distributed to 22 department heads for the Christmas street decoration program.

The city treasurer’s office cashed and withdrew the money even without the city’s accountants advice.

Last week, some department heads received a demand giving them until the end of the month to account for their cash advances.

Among those listed were engineer Kenneth Enriquez of the Department of Engineering and Public Works who received P315,560; City Legal Officer Joseph Bernaldez, who received P200,000 and newly installed Cebu City Medical Center chief Dr. Eduardo Sedoripa who received P98,819.

Other recipients were Celso Esteban Jimenea of the Human Resource and Development Office who received P250,000; William Artajo of the Management Information and Computer Services office who received P120,698; Joey Baclayon of the City Agriculture Office with P198,425; Dionisio Gualiza of the Department of Public Service with P110,960 and Stella Ygonia of the City Health Department with P150,000.

Young said that if he has his way, he would rather have Christmas decoration in the city streets be assigned to the Parks and Playground Commission and the barangays.

Young has advice for all city officials – know your limitations and learn the mistakes of the past.

This after the city council conducted an almost four-hour closed-door executive session yesterday with city treasurer Ofelia Oliva, city accountant Arlene Rentuza, and the some department heads including the officials from the Land Bank of the Philippines over the release of the cash advance.

Young said the “pressure” of Mayor Michael Rama on Oliva prompted her to do shortcuts in the procedure in withdrawing the money from the Land Bank of the Philippines-Plaza Branch even without accountant’s advice.

He said that the Office of the Mayor is partly to be blamed for the lapses committed by the city treasurer’s office.

The city treasurer’s office was the lead department tasked to implement the Christmas lights and decorations in the city’s major thoroughfares last December.

In the case of the P5 million cash advance, the liability is with paymaster Julieta Marquita, who is a bonded officer and the executive secretary of the city treasurer’s office.

LBP-Plaza branch manager Dexter Ruiz admitted that the transaction of the city hall was done on a special arrangement and case-to-case basis accommodation considering that there were instances that they have accommodated cash advance of the city even without accountant’s advice.

Ruiz said that it was only this time that the accountant’s advice did not follow the following day when the Commission on Audit suspended the transaction. – Garry B. Lao/BRP (THE FREEMAN)