Mayor on 24/7 City Hall operations: Digital shift is better - Garcia

CEBU, Philippines — Although he welcomes the initial introduction of the “Sleepless City Hall” by the incoming administration, Cebu City Mayor Raymond Garcia admitted they had also considered the same idea but found that a digital application would be a better alternative.

“Well, I hope that it would be successful, that is my wish,” said Garcia when asked for his opinion on the plan to implement a “Sleepless City Hall,” which aims to operate 24 hours—a program that allows the working class to process necessary documents in the evening.

While expressing hope for its success, Garcia added that he would also like to see other government agencies replicate the envisioned 24-hour system.

According to him, such replication would expand the reach of services the public can access.

Garcia explained that City Hall’s services are limited to acquiring a health card, a cedula, among others.

He added that many crucial requirements individuals need can only be obtained from the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), Social Security System (SSS), and other important agencies.

Despite these hopes, Garcia admitted that during his one-year term as mayor, they considered implementing such a scheme through a digital application.

“Not necessarily nga we have to open in the evening or in the wee hours in the morning,” said Garcia.

According to him, operating 24 hours comes with many considerations, including increased electricity bills, night differential pay for employees working at night, and other related factors. After evaluating these, Garcia said they concluded that developing an application would be a better alternative.

This application was designed to offer City Hall services digitally, aligning with technological advancements.

“That way when you apply, you will get you response online, all you do is just print it online and as result you will save on electric cost, you will save on manpower’s cost, etcetera,” said Garcia.

He stressed that they had already mapped out a plan for this scheme, which was to be called the “Cebutizen App.”

According to him, it was intended to mirror the online system for business permit transactions that is currently being implemented.

Garcia, however, said they were unable to move forward with the project since he only had one year as the city’s top official.

“This (city hall services) would have been done better if you use technology with an app rather than ingon ana,” said Garcia.

“But, ako, I am very supportive with the new administration so I said let it be,” he added.

Garcia then emphasized that although he is supportive, he hopes the incoming administration will continue what his team started in developing these digital applications. According to him, this would eliminate the need for employees to work overtime shifts or for offices to remain open at night.

He said this will be among the topics they will present to mayor-elect Nestor Archival at their upcoming meeting as part of the transition process.

The “Sleepless City Hall” was first introduced by Archival, who said it was conceived after observing that many employees do not have the luxury to process documents during the day. He added that some even have to take a leave of absence from work.

Archival said the concept was outlined by his running mate, Vice Mayor-elect Tomas Osmeña, and is one he fully supports.

“Kani nigawas ni (nga concept) because daghan man gud nga concerns sa atong mga tawo gikan sa BPO

(Business Process Outsourcing),” said Archival.

He stressed that these concerns are from BPO employees—approximately 200,000 of them—who, he said, contribute to at least 50 percent of the city’s economy. Archival further noted that this 50 percent corresponds to billions in investments being poured into the BPO sector.

As stated, Archival emphasized that it is only fitting for BPO employees, along with others who work during the day, to also have access to City Hall services.

“It will not be perfect yet siguro, unahon lang nato ang mga basic services sa city hall,” said Archival.

He also said that in the long run, once the program has been tested and necessary adjustments have been made, they may request national agencies to replicate the concept—adding that this is part of their long-term goal. — (FREEMAN)