CEBU, Philippines - Barangay secretaries and treasurers of Cebu City’s 80 barangays are asking Mayor Michael Rama to include them in the monthly honoraria that the city government promised to all elected barangay officials.
A manifesto has been initiated by Punta Princesa barangay captain Jose Navarro supporting the barangay treasurers’ and secretaries’ move to have them included in the honoraria.
According to the manifesto, the secretaries and the treasurers are very vital to the operation of the barangay because they lay the ground works for the councils to perform.
“We, barangay treasurers and barangay secretaries, are evidently saddled with the different tasks either assigned to us by our respective barangay captains and members of the council, or those that are congruent to our post,” the manifesto reads.
They are asking a P3,000 monthly honorarium, the amount equivalent to what a councilman receives.
Rama earlier announced to give P5,000 monthly allowance to each barangay captain and P3,000 to each barangay councilman, which will be retroactive since January this year.
However, the barangay treasurers and secretaries believe that they too deserve the allowance as they are considered ranking officials of the barangay under the Local Government Code.
“We, barangay secretaries and treasurers, bonding together and in unison deeply involved in activities that will redound to the benefit of all of us, be included as duly recipients of the monthly financial assistance as a subsidy stipend to all barangay officials every month,” the manifesto added.
They are also asking that the stipend, if granted, should be retroactive from January.
Navarro, a former president of the Association of the Barangay Councils, said he endorsed the manifesto because he sees equal recognition between barangay secretaries and treasurers, and other elected barangay officials.
Rama said he is willing to include the barangay secretaries and treasurers in the P3,000 monthly honorariums from the City Hall.
However, he said he needs to wait for the opinion of the Commission on Audit (COA) on the legality of his plan.
The city government needs a budget of about P100 million to pay for the honoraria of all barangay officials. - THE FREEMAN