Cebu City incurs P83 million overdraft

CEBU, Philippines - The Cebu City government's local finance committee has incurred an overdraft of over P80 million in the prioritization of this year's second Supplemental Budget (SB)-2.

This after the City Council committee on budget and finance recommended for the prioritization of an additional P664.2 million budget. The said additional budget includes the P501.3 million for the general fund and P162.9 for the special accounts.

The executive department has to "prioritize" P243.73 million worth of "urgent" projects and expenditures from the original proposed amount of P664.2 million, which would be sourced out from the retained operating surplus for 2013 amounting to P211.3 million; P2.2-million realignment from continuing appropriations for 2010; and P30.3 million from the reversion of accounts payable for the years 2008 to 2011, which were dormant accounts for at least three years already.

The council has disallowed the utilization of P257.5 million unappropriated balance for 2014 as funding source of SB-2.

The local finance committee, however, has only reduced P173, 781, 012 of the supposed P243.73 prioritized items, meaning it exceeded P83.7 million.

These include aid to barangays (P210 million to P140 million), garbage tipping fees (P56 million to P40 million), local and foreign traveling expenses (P2 million to P1 million), travel aid to city courts (P268,000 to P88,000), incentive allowance to city police (P1.12 million to P480, 000), asphalting of roads (P30 million to P15 million).

Other reduced expenses include hiring of medical officers (P7.5 million to P3.76 million), miscellaneous expenses for Task Force Kinabuhi (P10 million to P5 million), and subsidy to hospitals (P2.05 million to P945, 148).

Others expenditures were being retained, such as motor vehicle outlay for city barangays (P3 million), allowance for city fiscals (P600,000), lot acquisition for local school site in Barangay Sapangdaku (P15 million), acquisition of lot for local government center in Barangay Basak San Nicolas (P10.5 million), land improvements (P10 million), replacement of electrical materials for street lighting program (P10 million), construction of Lorega public market (P10 million) and financial assistance to Senior Citizen's cooperative (P2 million).

The reduced expenditures were duly approved by Mayor Michael Rama.

The SB-2 aims to cover the city's urgent expenses from July to December, including the salary of hundreds of job-order personnel.

Rama's executive assistant, lawyer Jose Daluz III, asked the council yesterday to use the 2014 unappropriated balance of P257 million as source of fund to cover up the P83.7 million overdraft.

"Can we ask a little of the unappropriated balance?" he asked.

However, committee on budget and finance chairman Margarita Osmeña said the executive department has to "disregard" the source under the unappropriated balance.

"It can't be. It's either we accept it or don't. We can't approve something that we can't defend. Kapoy na baya mi," Osmeña said.

According to Osmeña, they were told by the local finance committee to prioritize the items in the proposed SB-2 but then she said this would be difficult. "How can we prioritize when we don't know what they (executive department) want to be done. The budget has to be cut to half."

Further, Daluz said that the mayor won't allow not using the said source of fund, explaining that unappropriated balances in previous years were used to fund supplemental budgets during his predecessors.

"Dili siya mosugot nga sa iyang panahon dili magamit ni since unappropriated balance has been used time in time. Lisod i-explain kay kabalo man siya sa guidelines," he said.

In a separate interview, Rama said the items in the SB-2 were included due to "urgency and practicability," saying "this is not an admission that the city has short of funds."

The proposed amendment on SB-2 will still be scrutinized by committee on budget and finance. "This is not an assurance that we will approve it. There are still items that probably could be prioritized," she said.  (FREEMAN)