EDITORIAL - Not as rich as we thought?

There now seems to be a rather embarrassing development for the Cebu City government; the winners of various city-sponsored contests are complaining that they haven’t received their prize money.

These contests are the Heritage Summit Painting Competition and the Animal Welfare Summit Photo Contest, both held last year yet, and the Sinegugma Film Festival held earlier this year.

“It’s June now, so count how many months the city government had not yet paid those winners. A one-month delay in the release of cash prizes is tolerable...but six months?” local film writer and director Sam Costanilla is quoted as saying in a report in this newspaper.

He added that the city shouldn’t have bothered organizing the film festival if it couldn’t afford to give prizes to the winners, something we definitely agree with.

Needless to say, this is a very humiliating situation for a city that is supposed to be first-class and one of the richest in the country.

Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama has promised the contest winners that they will get their prizes eventually. What he could not say was exactly when they will receive them.

That promise aside, is this a sign that Cebu City may not be as rich as it put out to be? Or perhaps it really is but money isn’t being managed as well as it should be? Or is it an indication of something else even more worrying?

Just recently we wrote an editorial about the city’s lavish spending for the Independence Day celebration, adding that somewhere down the line we hope lack of funds won’t be cited as reason why some government workers won’t get paid, why a project had to end, or why a worthy cause cannot be implemented to begin with. It seems we can add contest prizes not going to those who won them to such scenarios.

The winners of the “Barangayan” held during the Independence Day celebration were also promised a prize, but as of this writing no amount has been disclosed. Go figure.