Cebu City ‘topnotchers’ to get cash incentives

CEBU, Philippines - The City Council has approved an ordinance granting cash incentive of up to P100,000 to Cebu City residents who make it to the top 10 list of passers of licensure examinations.

Authored by Councilors Mary Ann Delos Santos and Nendell Hanz Abella, the “topnotchers incentive ordinance” aims to “inspire graduates to strive harder and to fire-up their desires to be on top and claim the feat to be one of Cebu’s best”.

The ordinance was approved last Wednesday, more than eight months after it was proposed.

Delos Santos, clarified, that the ordinance also covers Cebu City residents who finish from schools outside the city. What it requires, at the minimum, is for the topnotcher to be a registered voter of Cebu City, a native Cebuano or a descendant of a Cebuano, and has not committed crimes involving moral turpitude or acts that would tarnish the image of Cebu City prior to the date of the examination.

Those who will rank first in the Physician’s Board exam and  the  Bar  exam  will get P100,000 while those who will rank two down to five will get P50,000. Those who will rank sixth to 10 will get P20,000. 

In exams administered by the Professional Regulations Commission, those who will rank first will get P50,000 while those who will rank two to five will get P25,000. Those who will rank sixth to 10 will get P15,000.

Allocation for the incentives will be included in the city’s annual budget.

Apart from the cash incentives, each topnotcher will also receive a plaque of recognition, which will be given during the city’s Charter Day celebration.

“Cebuano topnotchers bring pride, honor, and serve as inspiration especially to the youth sector and studentry. The City of Cebu understands the hardships and efforts exerted by every board or bar candidates that an incentive to the topnotchers is proper and reasonable,” the councilors said.

The Bar examination is considered the most difficult in the country. Yesterday alone, the fourth and final Sunday of the exams, only 5,987 out of the 6,344 examinees showed up.

Discrimination?

Even with its good intentions, Councilor Alvin Dizon said the ordinance seems to discriminate “qualified” graduates of schools here but who are not voters in Cebu City.

“This will discriminate topnotchers who are not from Cebu City. We should not discriminate non-voters kay angayan man pud sila hatagan og incentives,” he said.

Councilor Noel Eleuterio Wenceslao agreed, saying, “this is to entice students from other universities and provinces to enroll in our schools.”

Councilor Sisinio Andales argued, however, that the exclusion of non-voters serves as a safety net to “avoid ambiguity.” (FREEMAN)